Islamic State abducts 300 workers in Syria as fighting intensifies

Islamic State (IS) militants have abducted 300 cement workers and contractors in an area north-east of Damascus, Syrian state TV reported as fighting elsewhere in the country also worsened.

Meanwhile, the UN special envoy for Syria said the next round of peace talks in Geneva was expected to start next week, around April 13.

Staffan de Mistura said the new round should focus on a political process that he hoped would lead to a “concrete or real beginning of a political transition”.