Civilians killed in Idlib as regime continues truce violations

Three women were killed and other civilians injured on Sunday as regime forces bombarded the cities of Khan Shaykhun and Ma'arat al-Numan in Idlib contryside, northwest of Syria.

A source from the Syrian Civil Defence told The New Arab that regime forces stationed in the town of Abu Dali, southeast of Idlib, bombarded the cities with dozens of missiles, with a woman killed in both Khan Shaykhun and Ma'arat al-Numan.

Images were shared on social media depicting burnt corpses.

An additional woman died in Ma'arat al-Numan as a result of injuries sustained as a result of the bombing that targeted the city on Saturday, and left behind dead and wounded.

The Civil Defence in Idlib said that regime forces targeted the province on Saturday with 236 missiles, including 19 cluster rockets, leaving 10 dead.

Local residents reported cluster bombs being used.

"Assad's forces have started shelling cluster bombs on the southern Idlib countryside," said Fared, an activist in Idlib. 

"The first city was Khan Shaykhun. At 1:20 the shelling began on the cities of Ma'arat al-Numan.  When the first rocket landed on my city I was very afraid.  People started running down the streets to hide from the shelling"

"The ambulances began to rush to the bombing sites…I went to the bombing site to document and photograph the location of the shelling...a rocket landed 500 metres away from me," he continued.

"There were many dead and wounded civilians and children.  We were afraid of cluster bombs falling on us"

This week, 24 civilians were killed in the town of Khan Shaykhun alone as a result of continued shelling despite the Sochi Agreement, which provides for the establishment of a demilitarised zone and a ceasefire.

The bombing followed the tripartite summit in Sochi between the guarantors of the Astana agreement - Russia, Turkey and Iran - which confirmed the continuation of the agreement.