In Syria, a rebel fighter clears Islamic State minefields

MAREA, Syria (Reuters) - Ahmad Najjar stands in the middle of an Islamic State minefield in northern Syria holding torn camouflage rags that he said were from the clothing of a colleague recently blown up while dismantling explosives planted by the militant group.

Najjar, a 27 year-old Free Syrian Army fighter from the rebel-held town of Marea, risks his life every day to clear mines planted in roads and fields by Islamic State last summer when they briefly surrounded his hometown.