WASHINGTON - The Obama administration says the Syrian government is continuing to fire Scud missiles at rebels and regime opponents as they make territorial gains.

A State Department official said Thursday that Washington was aware that the regime had used Scud missiles within the last few days, despite warnings from the U.S. and other nations not to escalate the crisis.

The official spoke on condition of anonymity because the information is classified. NATO and the Pentagon have previously confirmed that Scud missiles have been fired at the opposition.

Last week, defence officials said the regime fired the missiles from the Damascus area into northern Syria. At the time, one official estimated that the number of Scuds fired was more than a half-dozen.

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