Civic groups on Wednesday called on the international community to put an end to the Assad regime and Russia’s bombing campaign in Idlib and rural Hama, pleading with the humanitarian organizations to help more than 700,000 people who fled their homes.
Local activists pointed out that the Assad regime and Russia are seeking to increase the pressure on the civilian population to force them to flee through the deliberate and violent shelling of civilian facilities and medical centers. They said that the regime is focusing its bombardment on the major towns in Idlib province, such as Ma’aret al-Nu’man, Ariha, Khan Sheikhoun, Sarqib, and Jisr al-Shughour.
The bombardment has most recently forced around 150 households to flee the farmlands surrounding the town of Kafarzeita in northern rural Hama.
According to the communications office of the Free Directorate of Health in Hama, the Assad regime and Russian air forces have so far bombed at least 13 medical centers in Hama and 20 others in Idlib province. The Directorate called upon the international community and the United Nations to shoulder their responsibilities with regards to the protection of medical facilities and workers.
Reports by monitoring groups confirmed that the Assad regime and Russian forces targeted 63 hospitals, 27 civil defense centers, 91 educational facilities, eight IDP camps, 14 bakeries, 13 public markets, two water stations, and three power plants.
The Syrian National Coalition earlier said that “the Syrian people are victim of genocide in which the international community is complicit either directly or indirectly.”
The Coalition stressed that war crimes are taking place in Syria, especially as that the Assad regime and its allies are bombing mainly civilian targets, including public markets, schools and hospitals amid total inaction by the international community. It said that the current situation in Syria will remain “dark stain on the forehead of the international community.” (Source: Syrian Coalition’s Media Department)
