Russian strikes kill 10 civilians in Syria's Idlib

At least ten civilians were killed when Russian warplanes hit residential areas in Idlib, a de-escalation zone in northwestern Syria, overnight, Turkey's state-run Anadolu Agency reported on Jan. 30.         

The Russian bombing target various areas, including a hospital and a bakery, in Ariha district, south of Idlib, late on Jan. 29, said the Syrian opposition's observatory.         

The civil defense agency White Helmets said the attack wounded 37 others, as well.         

The hospital is out of service after the bombing, it added.     

Earlier on Jan. 29,  Russian and regime forces carried out airstrikes in Idlib, killing at least eight civilians, local

Russian warplanes targeted the rural areas of the northwestern province de-escalation zone, according to the White Helmets.

The attack also injured 20 others, the observatory said.

UN says 'most alarming reports' coming from Idlib

Meanwhile, a senior U.N. official on Jan. 29 voiced his concern over "the dire and deteriorating humanitarian situation" in Syria's northwestern Idlib.

Mark Lowcock, under-secretary-general for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, said in his briefing to the UN Security Council that "the most alarming reports" are coming from southern Idlib, "where hundreds of airstrikes by the government of Syria and its allies have been concentrated."

"The hostilities have escalated in recent days in the Idlib area, especially around Ma'arat al-Numan, Saraqeb and western Aleppo," Lowcock said, adding: "The fighting in these areas appears to be more intense than anything we have seen in the last year."

Citing the data of Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), he said that...