Two civilians were killed, and another was injured due to artillery shelling by Syrian regime forces targeting residential neighborhoods in the city of Sarmin, eastern Idlib, on the evening of Sunday, September 29.
The Syria Civil Defence rescue agency stated that all the victims were from the same family (cousins) and condemned the continuous crimes of the regime forces and their allies, which threaten the lives of civilians and undermine their living, agricultural, and educational activities in wide areas of the Idlib and Aleppo countryside.
The outskirts of the city of Sarmin and the village of Ma’arat Alia in eastern Idlib, as well as the outskirts of the city of Darat Izza in western Aleppo, were subjected to artillery and rocket shelling by regime forces and their allies, with no reports of civilian injuries.
The city of Sarmin is located less than eight kilometers from the regime-controlled areas in the city of Saraqib. It is considered a frontline area and has been subjected to intermittent shelling throughout the past years, despite the presence of “de-escalation” agreements since 2020.
The intensity of the regime forces’ and their allies’ attacks on the region has increased in recent days, amid warnings from military observatories to avoid gatherings and take caution, as Hezbollah and regime forces have repeatedly targeted the Idlib countryside, especially from the village of Talhiya in eastern Idlib, coinciding with the escalation of Israeli attacks in Lebanon.
Since the beginning of 2024 until mid-September, Syria Civil Defence teams have responded to 665 attacks by regime forces, Russia, and their loyalists in northwestern Syria.
These attacks have resulted in the killing of 54 civilians, including 15 children and six women, and injuries to 246 civilians, including 96 children and 29 women.
Since last January, the Syrian regime forces and their allies have intensified their targeting of northwestern Syria areas using domestically manufactured kamikaze drones, adopting a new approach that threatens people’s lives and destroys their means of survival and livelihoods.
The northwestern region of Syria is subject to the Moscow agreement signed between Russia and Turkey, which halted military operations and frontline battles since it was signed on March 5, 2020.
Despite the agreement, northern Syrian areas are subjected to almost daily shelling and airstrikes by Russian aircraft at inconsistent rates, coinciding with daily flights of Russian drones in the region’s skies.