DAMASCUS, March 19 (Xinhua) -- At least 39 people were killed on Saturday when airstrikes targeted Syria's northern city of al-Raqqa, the de facto capital of the Islamic State (IS) group, a monitor group reported.

The deaths include five children and seven women, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

The UK-based watchdog group said the strikes targeted several areas in al-Raqqa, adding that there is no information yet whether the strikes were Syrian, Russian or U.S.-led.

The death toll could likely rise as there was more than 60 people in cortical conditions, the Observatory added.

It said the strikes came a day after 16 people were killed by similar strikes on al-Raqqa.