DAMASCUS, Feb. 16 (Xinhua) -- A total of 34 bodies of Syrian civilians and soldiers have been unearthed in the northern province of Raqqa, state news agency SANA reported Friday.

The Syrian forces unearthed the mass grave in the town of Ramthan in the western countryside of Raqqa, the former de facto capital of the terror group Islamic State (IS), said SANA.

It said the bodies belonged to civilians and military personnel killed when the IS militants were in control of that area.

The grave was discovered upon information provided by the families, which have started returning to their villages in the countryside of Raqqa after the defeat of IS.

It was not the first mass grave that has been discovered in Raqqa, the former IS stronghold in Syria.

Last month, the Syrian army discovered a mass grave in the Dibsi Afnan village, where the bodies of 115 soldiers and civilians were found.

The Syrian army liberated most areas in the countryside of Raqqa from the IS militants in July 2017, as the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) captured the capital city of Raqqa in October 2017.