8 civilians killed in army attack in northern Syria

By Ahmet Karaahmet and Esref Musa

IDLIB, Syria (AA) - At least eight civilians were killed in attacks by Syrian armed forces in northern Syria, local sources said Saturday.

The Syrian army and Iranian-backed foreign terror groups carried out intense attacks in various districts of Idlib province and the countryside of Aleppo province with ground-to-ground weapons, according to information obtained from the White Helmets civil defense organization.

At least 25 others were wounded in the attacks. The injured were transferred to nearby hospitals, said the White Helmets.

The death toll rose to 36 in attacks by the army and its supporters on Idlib and Aleppo provinces while the number injured has increased to 211 in the past week.

- Situation in Idlib

Türkiye, Russia and Iran decided to create four "de-escalation zones" in Syria in areas not under the control of the Syrian government at a meeting in Astana, Kazakhstan in 2017.

The Damascus administration, Iran-backed terrorists and Russia continued their attacks and seized three out of four districts and headed for Idlib.

Although Türkiye reached an additional agreement with Russia to strengthen the cease-fire in September 2018, the attacks intensified again in May 2019.

After a new cease-fire deal for northwestern Syria was reached between Ankara and Moscow on March 5, 2020, the cease-fire was largely preserved.

In the 2017-2020 period, about 2 million civilians fleeing the attacks were forced to migrate to areas near the Turkish border.

*Writing by Zehra Nur Duz in Ankara