Seven killed after Russian jets hit Syria hospital near Turkish border, say witnesses
- A woman and a child were among the seven civilians killed when mortar rounds hit the hospital in the city of Atareb
- A gas facility was hit near Sarmada city in Idlib province, but there were no immediate reports of casualties
Russian jets hit rebel training camps in northwestern Syria near the Turkish border on Sunday, hours after Syrian artillery killed seven civilians and injured 14 doctors in an attack on a hospital in the area, witnesses and rebel sources said.
The sources said a Russian surface-to-surface missile also hit the town of Qah while Russian air strikes came close to densely populated refugee camps along the border with Turkey.
A gas facility was hit near Sarmada city in Idlib province, but there were no immediate reports of casualties.
The spokesman for the National Army, a Turkish-backed rebel alliance in the northwest, said Russia, which backs the government in Damascus, sought to destabilise the last rebel stronghold in Syria but the strikes did not signal an imminent major assault against Idlib.
“The Russian aerial strikes are continuing. Ballistic missiles have also hit areas close to civilian centres.” Major Youssef Hamoud told Reuters. “They seek to sow chaos and confusion,” he added.
There was immediate comment from Moscow.