The so-called Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said on Friday that ISIL insurgents abducted at least 193 Kurdish civilians, aged from 17 to 70 years, from the town of Qabasin on Thursday.

Rami Abdul Rahman, director of the Britain-based opposition monitoring group, said the reasons behind their kidnapping were "unknown, but this kind of act takes place repeatedly in areas under ISIL control."

In early December, al-Qaeda-affiliated ISIL terrorists kidnapped at least 51 Kurds in the towns of Minbij and Jerablus in Aleppo province.

Among the hostages were nine children and a woman, said the Britain-based group at the time, adding that there was no information on where they had been taken.

On December 13, ISIL militants invaded the village of Ihras, situated 20 kilometers (12 miles) south of the town of Azaz in Aleppo province, and captured the villagers, including at least six women, and took them to an unknown location. 

In July 2013, ISIL kidnapped some 200 Kurdish civilians from the towns of Tell Aran and Tal Hasel also in Aleppo province. Only a few of those hostages have reportedly been released.

Syria has been gripped by deadly violence since March 2011. According to some sources, over 160,000 people have been killed and millions displaced due to the violence fueled by the foreign-backed militants.

According to reports, Western powers and their regional allies -- especially Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Turkey -- are supporting the militants operating inside Syria.

A British defense study showed that about 100,000 militants, fragmented into 1,000 groups, are fighting in Syria against the government and people.

NTJ/MB