In a new contravention of the “de-escalation” agreement in Syria’s north and continuing Syria civilians’ tragedy, eight civilians were killed and five wounded after an attack on the village of Iblin and the town of al-Fu‘ah in Idlib, in northwest Syria, by regime forces. Armed groups affiliated with Iran are also implicated.
According to an official with the Syria Civil Defense group, Firas Khalifa, “the Syrian regime forces targeted the village of Iblin and the town of al-Fu‘ah this morning with ground weapons, which resulted in the killing of 3 civilians in Iblen and 5 in al-Fu‘ah. The wounded were transported to hospitals in the area.”
Recently regime forces’ attacks within the de-escalation zone have increased.
United Nations spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric has expressed the UN’s concern about the humanitarian situation in Syria, especially the border-crossing crisis.
At a press conference, Dujarric said the UN remains deeply concerned about the deteriorating humanitarian situation of 13.4 million people across Syria, noting that some of the most vulnerable Syrians are in the northwest.
Dujarric explained that more than 90% of those assessed by the United Nations are in “dire” or “catastrophic” need, most of all the 2.7 million internally displaced men, women, and children.
The United Nations Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) recently announced the killing or wounding of nearly 12,000 children in Syria since the war’s outbreak 10 years ago.
In a statement coinciding with the approaching 10th anniversary of the crisis, UNICEF noted the uncertainty surrounding the future of many children in Syria, pointing out that 90% require some form of humanitarian assistance.
Syria’s civil war began on 18 March 2011, when Bashar al-Assad’s regime repressed pro-democracy protests with unexpected brutality.
Over the past years, the Syrian regime has granted citizenship to members of groups affiliated with Iran in return for participating in its war.
In May 2017, Turkey, Russia, and Iran announced an agreement to establish a “de-escalation zone” in Idlib, as part of the Astana discussions. However, regime forces and their supporters have continued to attack the area, despite the further ceasefire agreement in March 2020.
Arab Organisation for Human Rights in the UK (AOHR UK) has repeatedly demanded an end to the war in Syria and called on the international community to put pressure on the Syrian- Russian regime to end a conflict which has claimed hundreds of thousands of lives and displaced more than 10 million people.
