Syrian, Russian airstrikes kill 15 civilians in Idlib

By Esref Musa and Mehmet Burak Karacaoglu

IDLIB, Syria (AA) - Russia and Syrian regime carried out airstrikes in Idlib de-escalation zone, northwestern Syria, killing at least 15 civilians, a Syrian civil defense group announced Thursday.

The Syrian opposition aircraft observatory said areas near Idlib’s city center and villages were targeted with the airstrikes.

The White Helmets civil defense group said 15 civilians were killed.

Turkey continues its recent reinforcement installation in Idlib de-escalation zone. A Turkish convoy including scores of tanks were deployed at different points in Idlib.

The Bashar al-Assad regime and its allies have continued intensified air and land attacks on civilian settlements in the Idlib de-escalation zone.

In September 2018, Turkey and Russia agreed to turn Idlib into a de-escalation zone in which acts of aggression are expressly prohibited.

But more than 1,800 civilians there have been killed in attacks by regime and Russian forces since then as the cease-fire continues to be violated.

Turkey announced on Jan. 10 a new cease-fire in Idlib would start just after midnight Jan. 12, but the regime and Iran-backed terrorist groups continued their attacks.

More than 1.5 million Syrians have moved near the Turkish border due to intense attacks over the past year.

Turkey remains the country with most refugees in the world, hosting more than 3.7 million migrants since the start of the civil war in Syria in 2011.

* Writing by Gozde Bayar