5 killed in regime shelling in Syria's Idlib

By Esref Musa

IDLIB, Syria (AA) - Five civilians were killed and 25 others injured Tuesday in the Syrian regime’s shelling of northwestern Idlib province.

Artillery shells targeted Maarat Al-Numan and the towns of Al-Tah and Hosh Al-Qasabiya, which fall within the de-escalation zone in Idlib province, Mustafa Haj Yusuf, head of the White Helmets civil defense agency in Idlib, told Anadolu Agency.

He said rescue efforts were still underway in the attacked areas.

Last September, Russia and Turkey agreed to set up a de-escalation zone in Idlib -- in which acts of aggression are expressly prohibited -- to allow the return of thousands of displaced Syrians to their homes.

Syria has only just begun to emerge from a devastating conflict that began in 2011 when the Bashar al-Assad regime cracked down on demonstrators with unexpected ferocity.

Hundreds of thousands of civilians have been killed or displaced in the conflict, mainly by regime airstrikes targeting opposition-held areas.