On Tuesday, at least 17 civilians were killed in a bombardment by the Assad regime on the southern and southeastern Idleb countryside, hitting populated areas, including markets, amid an increasing displacement of residents.
The director of the Idleb Media Center, Obaida al-Fadel, told Alsouria Net that the preliminary death toll was 17 civilian victims, distributed as follows: One dead in a bombardment of al-Kanyas village; four dead in Masran; six dead, including women and children, in Bidama; two dead (a man and a woman) in Talmenes; one dead in Marashma; as well as three dead civilians on the Turkish border.
Coinciding with the regime escalation on the area, Russian warplanes on Tuesday struck the outskirts of Maarat al-Nu’man and Jarjanaz in the southern Idleb countryside, according to Fadel, who added that the situation was “very difficult,” especially in the eastern countryside of the city, which has been emptied of civilians.
The Syrian Civil Defense documented a barrel bomb strike from Assad regime helicopters on Maar Shoreen and Talmenes in the Maarat al-Nu’man countryside on Tuesday, adding that Civil Defense teams had inspected the areas that were struck and confirmed that they were free of casualties, although there had been damage to homes and properties.
Fadel said that the displacement of residents from the southern and southeastern Idleb countryside was ongoing, with displaced people heading to camps in Atmeh on the Syrian-Turkish border. He said that regime warplanes had struck a convoy of displaced people on the Aleppo-Damascus highway, killing one person.
According to the Humanitarian Response Coordinators, more than 2,137 families—over 11,000 people—had been displaced over the last 24 hours from the southern and southeastern Idleb countryside, with most of them still on the main roads and out in the open.
The group added in a statement that at least 19,898 families had been displaced between Nov. 1 and Dec. 17, 2019.
The Coordinators called on all local actors and agencies to secure shelter centers for displaced people out in the open and to open schools and camps urgently and immediately to absorb the “huge” number of people who were continuing to be displaced to parts of northern Syria.
This article was translated and edited by The Syrian Observer. The Syrian Observer has not verified the content of this story. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.
