Five killed in Syria airstrikes as rebels deny responsibility for Aleppo bombing

Two people were killed in an airstrike in Idlib province, as unexploded Russian ordnance killed three more civilians.

2 min read

22 November, 2019

The Syrian regime and Russia have intensified their bombing of civilian areas [Getty]

Two people were killed and several others injured on Friday morning when Russian planes bombed the town of al-Fatira in western Idlib province.

Several civilians were also injured when Syrian regime forces shelled the town of Bdama in western Idlib province.

Three more people were killed in the city of Maarat al-Numan on Thursday evening when unexploded Russian ordnance from previous airstrikes exploded.

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Russian and regime aircraft have been intensifying their bombardment of rebel-held Idlib province this week, killing dozens of civilians. The bombing is taking place despite a ceasefire announced by Russia in September 2019, and a de-escalation agreement reached last year.

On Wednesday evening, at least 22 civilians were killed when Russian planes bombarded the Qah refugee camp in Idlib province and a nearby hospital. Tents belonging to displaced people who had fled previous airstrikes were set ablaze by the bombing.

Syrian regime television also reported that seven civilians were killed in a rebel bombardment of Aleppo city.

"Seven civilians were killed and 30 more were wounded by a rocket attack carried out by terrorist groups," regime TV said, referring to anti-Assad rebels.

Rebels control the northern and western parts of Aleppo province, but the opposition National Liberation Front denied responsibility for bombing civilian areas in a statement, saying that they had targeted regime military facilities outside Aleppo.

"Our aim is to protect civilians and we don't distinguish between those who live in our areas and those living under the oppression of Assad's gangs… in response to the continuing massacres of the criminal regime, Iranian militias, and Russia against our people, the latest of which were in the Qah refugee camp and Maarat al-Numan, we retaliated against military barracks and the sources of enemy fire outside cities," the statement said.

More than 500,000 people have been killed and millions more displaced as a result of the Syrian conflict, which began in 2011 when the Assad regime brutally suppressed peaceful pro-democracy protests.

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