AP, Palm Beach :
President Donald Trump is speaking out against the “carnage” involving thousands of civilians in a rebel stronghold in Syria.
In a tweet Thursday, Trump wrote: “Russia, Syria, and Iran are killing, or on their way to killing, thousands of innocent civilians in Idlib Province. Don’t do it! Turkey is working hard to stop this carnage.”
The tweet refers to an intense air and ground bombardment by government forces in southern and eastern Idlib province, the last rebel-held bastion in the country.
Syrian government forces about a month ago launched a renewed effort to take the province, which is dominated by al-Qaida-linked militants and is also home to 3 million civilians. The United Nations has warned of the growing risk of a humanitarian catastrophe along the Turkish border.
A Syrian relief group said Wednesday that more than 200,000 men, women and children fled their homes in buses, trucks and cars in recent weeks. Many have been heading toward the Turkish border for safety.
Before a ground offensive began a week ago, the U.N. reported that some 60,000 Idlib residents had already been displaced since the government’s bombing campaign started late last month.
Videos posted online by activists and the opposition’s Syrian Civil Defense, also known as White Helmets, showed long lines of cars, trucks and buses heading north. People carried their valuables and loaded bags and mattresses on buses.
Trump also addressed the plight of civilians in Idlib in June, accusing Russia, Syria and Iran of “indiscriminately killing many innocent civilians” in a bombing campaign. “The World is watching this butchery,” he tweeted then, imploring them to “STOP!” Several months later he announced he would withdraw U.S. troops from northeastern Syria. The Telegraph adds:Nearly a quarter of a million people have fled their homes in the last-remaining Syrian rebel stronghold of Idlib to escape a Syrian and Russian offensive on the area.
Air strikes and shelling this month have sparked a mass exodus that aid workers warn could lead to one of the worst humanitarian catastrophes of Syria’s eight-year civil war.
US President Donald Trump yesterday called for the governments in Moscow, Damascus and Tehran to stop the violence. “Russia, Syria, and Iran are killing, or on their way to killing, thousands” of civilians in the northwestern province, Mr Trump tweeted, adding: “Don’t do it!”
The Syrian Response Coordination Group, a relief group active in the north west of the country, said 216,632 people have fled towards the closed Turkish border since the beginning of December.
The group called on other relief agencies to help the displaced amid cold weather and heavy rain. In recent weeks, tent settlements for displaced people have suffered from flooding, adding to their misery.
Footage circulating this week has shown cars and trucks in a long line of traffic trying to leave the city of Maaret al-Numan for towns and villages further north, carrying blankets, mattresses and valuables.
Pictures from inside the city show areas of major destruction where only a few buildings appear to be left standing. Maaret al-Numan has come under heavy bombardment from Russian and Syrian forces in recent weeks as they seek to extend an offensive that originally began in Spring.
President Donald Trump is speaking out against the “carnage” involving thousands of civilians in a rebel stronghold in Syria.
In a tweet Thursday, Trump wrote: “Russia, Syria, and Iran are killing, or on their way to killing, thousands of innocent civilians in Idlib Province. Don’t do it! Turkey is working hard to stop this carnage.”
The tweet refers to an intense air and ground bombardment by government forces in southern and eastern Idlib province, the last rebel-held bastion in the country.
Syrian government forces about a month ago launched a renewed effort to take the province, which is dominated by al-Qaida-linked militants and is also home to 3 million civilians. The United Nations has warned of the growing risk of a humanitarian catastrophe along the Turkish border.
A Syrian relief group said Wednesday that more than 200,000 men, women and children fled their homes in buses, trucks and cars in recent weeks. Many have been heading toward the Turkish border for safety.
Before a ground offensive began a week ago, the U.N. reported that some 60,000 Idlib residents had already been displaced since the government’s bombing campaign started late last month.
Videos posted online by activists and the opposition’s Syrian Civil Defense, also known as White Helmets, showed long lines of cars, trucks and buses heading north. People carried their valuables and loaded bags and mattresses on buses.
Trump also addressed the plight of civilians in Idlib in June, accusing Russia, Syria and Iran of “indiscriminately killing many innocent civilians” in a bombing campaign. “The World is watching this butchery,” he tweeted then, imploring them to “STOP!” Several months later he announced he would withdraw U.S. troops from northeastern Syria. The Telegraph adds:Nearly a quarter of a million people have fled their homes in the last-remaining Syrian rebel stronghold of Idlib to escape a Syrian and Russian offensive on the area.
Air strikes and shelling this month have sparked a mass exodus that aid workers warn could lead to one of the worst humanitarian catastrophes of Syria’s eight-year civil war.
US President Donald Trump yesterday called for the governments in Moscow, Damascus and Tehran to stop the violence. “Russia, Syria, and Iran are killing, or on their way to killing, thousands” of civilians in the northwestern province, Mr Trump tweeted, adding: “Don’t do it!”
The Syrian Response Coordination Group, a relief group active in the north west of the country, said 216,632 people have fled towards the closed Turkish border since the beginning of December.
The group called on other relief agencies to help the displaced amid cold weather and heavy rain. In recent weeks, tent settlements for displaced people have suffered from flooding, adding to their misery.
Footage circulating this week has shown cars and trucks in a long line of traffic trying to leave the city of Maaret al-Numan for towns and villages further north, carrying blankets, mattresses and valuables.
Pictures from inside the city show areas of major destruction where only a few buildings appear to be left standing. Maaret al-Numan has come under heavy bombardment from Russian and Syrian forces in recent weeks as they seek to extend an offensive that originally began in Spring.
