Russia, regime strike on Idlib kills 29 civilians including 6 children

As the regime's inexorable push in north escalates tensions with Turkey, a monitor said on February 10 that Russian and regime strikes on the last major rebel enclave in Syria has killed 29 civilians in a day. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said that in the raids carried out on Monday, six children were also among the civilians who were killed in the village of Abin Semaan in Aleppo province where the Moscow-backed regime forces have been showcasing retaliation to retake a key highway. 

According to international reports, a rescue worker carried out the body of a little girl in a woolen blanket while one of her relatives was pleading to take her body. In the near-freezing temperatures, the volunteers were shivering while removing mounds of rubble and rescued a dust-covered man along with a little child who had been trapped beneath. 

Read - Syria: 8 Civilians Killed, 14 Injured In Suspected YPG Attack In Afrin

The latest airstrikes by Russia and regime were followed by an attack which had already killed at least 20 civilians in the neighbouring provinces of Idlib and Aleppo. Since December, Syrian government forces backed by Russia have been pressed a blistering assault against the Idlib region in country's northwest. The violence regarding this issue has killed more than 350 civilians and sent nearly 586,000 towards the Turkish border for relative safety. 

UN, aid groups call for an end

The United Nations and aid groups have reportedly appealed for the hostilities to end and also warned that the exodus risks are creating one of the worst humanitarian disasters of the nearly nine-year-war. However, the number of strike shave increased and continued. Both Turkey and Russia had agreed on a de-escalation deal for Idlib in 2017 which is currently held by Syria's opposition, but it has been violated. 

Read - NW Syria Violence Displaces 500,000 In Two Months

The Idlib province, along with some parts of neighbouring Aleppo and Latakia provinces is dominated by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham alliance along with their rebel allies. Nearly three million people live in the area including half of the civilians who have already fled the provinces due to violence. At least 50, 000 fighters are also in the disputed area, reportedly majority of them are jihadists but majority still remain the allied rebels. 

The Observatory said that a raid which occurred a day ago on Sunday by Russia had killed 14 people including nine in the village of Kafr Nuran in southwestern Aleppo province. Furthermore, Syrian air raids with crude barrel bombs had also claimed lives of four civilians in the Atareb district east of Aleppo and one more was killed in an artillery fire near the city of Jisr Al-Shughur and one in Ketian village in southern Idlib.

Read - Islamic State Steps Up Attacks In Syria & Iraq After Losing Territory: UN Experts

Read - UN Experts: Islamic State Steps Up Attacks In Syria And Iraq

(With agency inputs)