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More than 235,000 flee northwest Syria flare-up: UN
BEIRUT, Dec 27, 2019 (BSS/AFP) – More than 235,000 people have fled the
Idlib region over the past two weeks, the UN said Friday, amid heightened
regime and Russian attacks on Syria’s last major opposition bastion.
The mass displacement between 12 and 25 December has left the violence-
plagued Maaret al-Numan region in southern Idlib “almost empty,” the UN said
in a statement.
Since mid-December, Russian-backed regime forces have pressed with an
assault on jihadists in southern Idlib, despite an August ceasefire deal and
calls for a de-escalation from Turkey, France and the United Nations.
The increased air strikes came as Russian-backed regime forces advance on
the ground.
They have since December 19 seized dozens of towns and villages from the
jihadist amid clashes that have killed hundreds on both sides.
The bombardment and clashes have amplified displacement from Maaret al-
Numan and the nearby town Saraqeb in the southern Idlib region, the UN said.
“People from Saraqab and its eastern countryside are now fleeing in
anticipation of fighting directly affecting their communities next,” a
statement said.
Idlib is dominated by the country’s former Al-Qaeda affiliate, Hayat Tahrir
al-Sham, whose chief this week urged jihadists and allied rebels to head to
the frontlines and battle “the Russian occupiers” and the regime.
The region hosts some three million people, including many displaced by
years of violence in other parts of Syria.
The Damascus regime, which now controls 70 percent of Syria, has repeatedly
vowed to take back the area.
Backed by Moscow, Damascus launched a blistering offensive against Idlib in
April, killing around 1,000 civilians and displacing more than 400,000
people.
Despite a ceasefire announced in August, the bombardment has continued,
prompting Turkey this week to press for a fresh ceasefire deal during talks
in Moscow.
France on Tuesday called for an “an immediate de-escalation,” warning of
deteriorating humanitarian conditions.
The war in Syria has killed more than 370,000 people and displaced millions
since it began with anti-government demonstrations brutally crushed by
security forces.
BSS/AFP/SSS/1702 hrs