Syrian Airstrike Kills 35 Civilians in Idlib

Attack Hit a School, Killing Several Children

According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a flurry of airstrikes today against the Idlib Province in northern Syria killed at least 35 civilians today, including an estimated 22 school children, when one of the strikes hit a school.

The Observatory said they weren’t clear if the attacks were carried out by Syrian or Russian warplanes, though later reports from other sources attributed the attacks to the Syrians. The Idlib Province is controlled by the al-Qaeda-linked Nusra Front.

This has made it a regular target for airstrikes, though the comparative lack of intelligence on the location of Nusra fighters means that the attacks have a tendency to hit civilian bystanders. Few Nusra fighters have been caught up in any of the recent strikes.

The main fighting between Nusra and the Syrian military recently is over Aleppo, though there is also considerable tension along the border between Idlib and Latakia Provinces, with the Syrian military having talked up a potential invasion of Idlib from the coast for awhile.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.