Eight members of the Syrian National Army were killed in clashes with regime troops that raged Monday in the country's northwest, the opposition group Faylaq al-Sham said.

The group said six fighters were killed and three more wounded in an offensive launched by Syrian regime forces backed by the PKK’s Syrian wing, the YPG on Sunday night.

It later said two more fighters had been killed in the clashes in the Afrin region near the Turkish border, bringing the death toll to eight.

Faylaq al-Sham is an alliance of pro-Turkey opposition groups considered close to the Syrian branch of the Muslim Brotherhood.

An Agence France-Presse (AFP) correspondent said that the fighting died down early Monday evening.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which has a vast network of sources, said the regime troops and YPG took control of two Faylaq al-Sham positions in intense fighting involving heavy weapons.

Exchanges of fire occur regularly between Syrian regime forces and pro-Turkish opposition fighters who control part of the border.

Faylaq al-Sham has taken part in Turkish offensives launched since 2016 in northern Syria, mainly against the YPG.

Monday's fighting was unrelated to recent Turkish threats to launch a ground offensive in northern Syria; several sources told AFP.