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Russian air attack on marketplace kills 40 in Syria

The Russian military killed at least 40 civilians and wounded 70 more in an air attack on a marketplace in northwest Syria, media reported

Ersin Çelik
14:14 - 29/11/2015 Sunday
Update: 14:20 - 29/11/2015 Sunday
Yeni Şafak

Airstrikes carried out by Russian fighter jets on a busy marketplace in the province of Idlib in northwest Syria killed at least 40 civilians and injured 70 others, Turkish state-run Anadolu Agency reported on Sunday.



The attack occurred in the town of Ariha, 15 kilometers south of Idlib city center, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights' report.



Rami Abdulrahman, the director of the Observatory, said at least 60 people had been killed and wounded in the attack. The pro-opposition Orient TV reported an initial death toll of 40.



Officials at the Russian defense ministry could not immediately be reached for comment. The Russian air force has been conducting air strikes against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) and other terrorists supporting Syrian President Bashar Assad since Sept. 30. But the anti-ISIL international coalition including Turkey and the U.S. accused Russia of targeting West-backed moderate opposition and civilians.



Ariha is located in Idlib province, which is not a stronghold of ISIL, which controls vast areas of eastern Syria.



The Syrian military withdrew from Ariha in May as alliance of rebel groups advanced in Idlib in an offensive that resulted in the entire province falling to insurgents.

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8 years ago