Wed 01 May 2019:
Syrian regime forces dropped on Tuesday dozens barrel bombs on southern Idlib and northern Hama, after a halt of six months when Moscow and Ankara signed a de-escalation zone on the northwestern province.
Russian warplanes took part in the attack.
Some 48 explosive barrels were dropped by the regime’s helicopters on 16 areas in both Hama and Idlib countryside included in the Russian-Turkish demilitarized zone, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Right.
The monitor said a total of three regime forces and allied foreign groups were killed Tuesday after they were attacked by factions in Sahl Al-Ghab, in the countryside of northwestern Hama.
Last September, Russia and Turkey inked a buffer zone deal to prevent a massive regime offensive on the Idlib region, near the Turkish border.
However, the zone became under increasing bombardment since January when former al-Qaeda affiliate Hayat Tahrir al-Sham took full control of it.
Tuesday’s military escalation came as a meeting of representatives of the three guarantor countries – Turkey, Russia and Iran – failed to reach any agreement on Idlib during their round of talks in Kazakhstan last week.
A leader in the Syrian opposition said Tuesday that the Russian and Syrian military escalation on opposition-controlled areas is a prelude to a wider military operation, especially since the regime pushed military reinforcements to the provinces of Hama and Idlib.
The regime has its sights set on Idlib and the Hama countryside after it seized the countrysides of Damascus, Homs and Daraa from the opposition, he said.
The Syrian regime delegation worked on foiling the Astana talks to justify attacks on the two provinces despite a de-escalation agreement in the area, he explained.
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