Two civilians killed in Russian air strikes on water station in Syria's rebel-held northwest

At least two civilians have beenkilled in Russian air strikes on an abandoned water pumping station in Syria's rebel-held northwest.

As peran AFP report, late on Tuesday, the two strikeshit at the facility near Ain Shib, west of the city of Idlib, where displaced Syrians had been living. This comesamid a recent increase in attacks by the Syrian government's ally, Moscow.

Other late-night air strikes reportedly targeted the town of Ariha, located south of Idlib city in Syria.

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Casualties

Quoting first responders, AFP reports that at leasttwo civilians had been killed. Several inhabitantsof the building remain unaccounted for.

As per the monitoringgroup,the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, the strikes near Ain Shib had targeted "military bases belonging to Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS)".

Just hours before the Ariha strikes, Russian air attacks targeted a rebel base to the north of Idlib city killing three, and injuring seven HTS members. Five civilians were also wounded in the strike, reports UK-based monitoring group.

HTS is ajihadist group that controls the bastion. The group routinelycarries out deadly attacks on soldiers and pro-government forces. In recent days,Russian forces have repeatedly targeted the Idlib area. Some of Moscow's previous strikes also resulted in some civilian casualties.

On Monday, Russian air strikes on the periphery of Idlib Cityresulted in the deathof 13 HTS fighters and while several others were reportedly injured.

Earlier on August 5, a Russian air strikedirected at a former HTSbase that the militant group had vacated a few weeks prior killed three civilians— members of thesame family on the outskirts of Idlib.

Another strike in the Idlib province,on June 25, claimed the lives of at least 13 individuals, including nine civilians.

As per the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, Russian strikeshave wounded around 30 civilians in the Idlib province.Among the casualties of these air strikes, was a member of the Turkistan Islamic Party, an organisation primarily composed of Uyghur fighters, reports AFP.

Moscow intervention

The strikes are part of Russia's intervention in Syria's ongoing civil conflict. Since 2015, Moscow has aided the Syrian government's efforts to regain control over territories that were previously lost to rebel forces during the nation's 12-year civil conflict.

HTS group, which formerly had linkages to Al-Qaeda, holds control over significant areas within Idlib province, along with portions of adjacent Latakia, Hama, and Aleppo provinces.

(With inputs from agencies)

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