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28 March 2024

Syrian army reinforcements for Idlib

Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Al Moualem (centre right) meets top UN humanitarian official Valerie Amos (centre left), in Damascus on March 7. (Reuters)

Published
By AFP

Tanks and troop carriers were headed Wednesday for the embattled province of Idlib, a rebel stronghold in northwest Syria, said the Syrian National Council, the main opposition alliance.

"The SNC has noted 42 tanks and 131 troop carriers leaving Latakia in the direction of the town of Saraqeb," in Idlib province, "as well as military columns heading for the town of Idlib," the group said in a statement.

In addition, "several martyrs were killed" in bombardment of Maaret al-Numan, another town in Idlib province, it added.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said seven people were killed in violence across the country on Wednesday, five of them in Idlib province.

One civilian was killed by snipers in the village al-Atareb, in the northern province of Aleppo, and a child died of gunshots in Al Khalidiyeh, a neighbourhood in central Homs.

The SNC called on the international community, the Arab League and international NGOs to "act urgently and at all levels, to avoid a repeat of the massacre at Baba Amr, where hundreds of martyrs fell."

Baba Amr, a rebel district in the flashpoint city of Homs, fell last Thursday after almost a month of shelling by Syrian forces, and the SNC said the bombardment had reduced much of the city to rubble.

The group urged rebel fighters in the Damascus, Aleppo and Hama regions to "take all the necessary initiatives to alleviate the pressure on our brothers in Idlib."

The Syrian army has intensified its attacks on insurgency strongholds, particularly in Idlib, since it retook Baba Amr.

The Syrian Observatory said seven people were wounded on Wednesday by gunfire when government troops raided the village of Kfar Nobol, in Idlib province. Several people were arrested.

Troops also deployed in the Damascus neighbourhood of Qabun, where raids were carried out, according to the Britain-based group.

Military vehicles and troops also launched an assault on the town of Qara, outside Damascus, it said.