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Russia denies its warplanes hit MSF hospital in Syria Russia denies striking charity’s hospital in Syria
(about 4 hours later)
BEIRUT — Russia on Tuesday rebuffed claims that its warplanes struck a hospital supported by Doctors Without Borders in northern Syria in airstrikes the previous day that killed at least nine as Syrian government forces and a predominantly Kurdish coalition made gains against rivals in the country’s north. BEIRUT — Russia on Tuesday denied its warplanes carried out strikes on a Syrian hospital supported by Doctors Without Borders that killed at least nine people, as Syrian government forces and a Kurdish-led coalition advanced amid heavy fighting in the country’s north.
In Moscow, President Vladimir Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters the hospital report was another case in which those who make accusations against Russia cannot back them up. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights had said Russian warplanes targeted the hospital in Idlib province on Monday. The makeshift clinic was supported by the international aid group, also known by its French acronym MSF. France said that such attacks “could constitute war crimes.”
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights had said Russian warplanes targeted the hospital in Idlib province on Monday, destroying it and killing nine people. But the spokesman for Russian President Vladimir Putin dismissed the allegations, saying there was no proof.
The makeshift clinic was supported by the international aid group, also known by its French acronym MSF. France said that such attacks “could constitute war crimes.” “We categorically reject such claims, even more so because each time those who make such claims prove unable somehow to corroborate their unsubstantiated accusations,” Dmitry Peskov said.
Peskov, in a conference call with journalists, said those who make such accusations should instead do as Moscow does and rely on the “primary source” — official announcements from the Syrian government. When pressed, he told journalists the Syrian government had made a string of announcement on who could have been behind the bombing. He also noted that Syria’s ambassador to Russia said the hospital was destroyed by the Americans. In a conference call with journalists, he said those making allegations should do as Moscow does and rely on the “primary source” — official announcements from the Syrian government.
“We categorically reject such claims, even more so because each time those who make such claims prove unable somehow to corroborate their unsubstantiated accusations,” Peskov said. When pressed, he said Damascus had made announcements about who could have been behind the bombing. He said Syria’s ambassador to Russia said the hospital was destroyed by the U.S. military. A U.S.-led coalition is carrying out strikes against the Islamic State group in Syria.
MSF said the hospital in the town of Maaret al-Numan in Idlib province was hit four times in attacks that were minutes apart. The attack left the local population of around 40,000 without access to medical services, said MSF mission chief Massimiliano Rebaudengo. MSF said the hospital in the town of Maaret al-Numan was hit four times in attacks that were minutes apart. The attack left the local population of around 40,000 without access to medical services, said MSF mission chief Massimiliano Rebaudengo.
The Observatory said and other opposition activists said another hospital in Maaret al-Numan was also hit Monday, most likely by a Syrian government airstrike. In the neighboring Aleppo province, a missile struck a children’s hospital in the town of Azaz, killing five people, including three children and a pregnant woman, according to the Observatory. A third air raid hit a school in a nearby village, killing seven and wounding others.
And in the neighboring Aleppo province, a missile struck a children’s hospital in the town of Azaz, killing five people, including three children and a pregnant woman, according to the Observatory. A third air raid hit a school in a nearby village, killing seven and wounding others. Abdulrahman Al-Hassan, chief liaison officer at the Syrian Civil Defense, a group of first responders known as the “White Helmets,” said parts of a missile that landed near the hospital had Russian letters on them and that the type of missile had not been seen in the area prior to Russia’s military intervention, which began Set. 30.
Opposition official Abdulrahman Al-Hassan said the women’s hospital in Azaz was hit by two surface-to-surface missiles, blaming the attack on Russia because “photos of the missiles have Russian language (and) because we haven’t seen this kind (of missile) before the Russian intervention.” The airstrikes came just days after Russia and other world powers agreed to bring about a pause in fighting that would allow for the delivery of humanitarian aid and the revival of Syrian peace talks. The projected truce agreed on Friday in Munich was to begin in a week, but is still very much in doubt, largely because of the heavy fighting in Aleppo.
The airstrikes came just days after Russia and other world powers agreed to bring about a pause in fighting that would allow for the delivery of humanitarian aid and the revival of Syrian peace talks. The projected truce agreed on Friday in Munich was to begin in a week, but there has been no sign it would happen. In recent weeks Syrian government troops backed by Russian airstrikes have been advancing on Western-backed rebels and other insurgents, hoping to seal off rebel-held parts of Aleppo, formerly Syria’s largest city. Syria’s state news agency SANA and the Observatory said Tuesday that government forces took the villages of Ahras and Misqan.
Meanwhile, Syrian government troops and a predominantly Kurdish coalition of fighters advanced and captured more areas in the north from rival groups on Tuesday, while pro-government forces routed extremists from a main power station in the area. U.S.-allied Kurdish forces, which until now have mainly battled the Islamic State group and remained largely neutral in the civil war, have been advancing in the same region, battling Syrian rebels and other insurgents in a bid to expand a nearby enclave.
The north has been the focus of the most intense clashes in recent weeks in Syria. The Syria Democratic Forces, a coalition of Kurdish and Arab groups, have captured the major town of Tel Rifaat, one of the largest militant strongholds in the province, as well as the village of Kfar Naseh to the south. Parts of the coalition oppose President Bashar Assad but have also fought against other rebels and the Western-backed opposition.
Syria’s state news agency SANA and the Observatory said government forces took the villages of Ahras and Misqan in the northern province of Aleppo. Separately, members of the Syria Democratic Forces, a coalition of Arab and Kurdish groups, captured the major town of Tel Rifaat, one of the largest militant strongholds in Aleppo.After Tel Rifaat, SDF fighters also took the nearby village of Kfar Naseh, south of the town. Ahmad al-Omar, a member of the SDF, and the Observatory said SDF fighters also captured the village of Sheikh Issa and were approaching the rebel stronghold of Marea.
The SDF fighters are a separate entity in Syria’s five-year civil war and have mostly battled the Islamic State group. Parts of the coalition oppose President Bashar Assad but have also fought against other rebels and the Western-backed opposition. They said dignitaries from northern Aleppo are trying to negotiate an agreement whereby the insurgents would surrender Marea in exchange for a safe corridor to the town of Azaz, near the border with Turkey.
Intense clashes broke out Tuesday near the village of Kaljibrin as SDF fighters tried to reach it, according to the Observatory and Aleppo-based activist Bahaa al-Halaby. If SDF captures Kaljibrin, it would squeeze rebels in their stronghold of Mareh and the adjacent village of Sheikh Issa, which is also under attack by the IS. The SDF is also advancing in Aleppo itself, according to opposition activists, who say Syrian insurgents repelled an SDF assault on two neighborhoods.
Also Tuesday, government forces and allied gunmen captured a power station in eastern Aleppo from IS that the extremists had used as a jailhouse. The Observatory said the station and nearby villages were captured under the cover of aerial attacks by Syrian and Russian warplanes and helicopter gunships. “They were trying to besiege (rebel-held parts) of the city of Aleppo but were forced out,” activist Bahaa al-Halaby said via Skype. The Aleppo Media Center, an activist collective, corroborated his account.
Meanwhile, in the city of Aleppo, insurgents repelled an attack by SDF fighters on the neighborhoods of Hullok and Bustan al-Basha, according to al-Halaby and the Aleppo Media Center. Another SDF official, Ahmad Hiso, said Turkish troops shelled northern Syria on Tuesday, adding that since the shelling began three days ago, six civilians have been killed, including a woman and a child.
“They were trying to besiege (rebel-held parts) of the city of Aleppo but were forced out,” al-Halaby said via Skype. Turkey views the Syrian Kurdish fighters as an extension of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK, which has waged a decades-long insurgency against Ankara. A Turkish official told reporters in Istanbul that “each time there is fire from Syria, we respond.”
In Damascus, the U.N. special envoy to Syria, Staffan de Mistura, met on Tuesday with Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem. In a brief statement to reporters after the meeting, de Mistura said the talks focused on “the issue of humanitarian and hindered access to all besieged areas, not only by the government but also by the opposition and ISIL,” another acronym that refers to the IS. He added that Turkey has no plans to unilaterally send ground troops into Syria, but that Ankara has raised the issue in international meetings, including with the United States. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly on the issue.
The UN envoy arrived in the Syrian capital Monday for discussions on aid deliveries and how to resume peace talks in Geneva. Also Tuesday, government forces and allied gunmen captured a power station in eastern Aleppo from the IS group, which had used it as a jail. The Observatory said the pro-government forces captured the station and nearby villages with the help of Syrian and Russian airstrikes.
In Damascus, U.N. envoy Staffan de Mistura met Tuesday with Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem.
“We discussed the priority issue for us at the moment, which is the issue of humanitarian access to besieged areas,” de Mistura said.
“It is clear, it is the duty of the government of Syria to want to reach every Syrian person wherever they are and allow the U.N. to bring humanitarian aid,” de Mistura said.
“Tomorrow we test this, and we will be able to talk more about it,” he told reporters, without elaborating.
The U.N. envoy arrived in the Syrian capital Monday for discussions on aid deliveries and resuming peace talks in Geneva.
SANA quoted al-Moallem as saying that they talked about the efforts exerted by Syria to deliver humanitarian aid to its citizens, “particularly to the areas controlled by terrorist groups.”
The Lebanon-based Al-Mayadeen TV, a pro-Syrian government outlet, reported that the government has agreed to allow aid into the rebel-held towns of Zabadani and Moadamiyeh.
Indirect peace talks between representatives of the Syrian government and the opposition collapsed earlier this month in Geneva after just two days, largely because of the government offensive in Aleppo.Indirect peace talks between representatives of the Syrian government and the opposition collapsed earlier this month in Geneva after just two days, largely because of the government offensive in Aleppo.
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Berry reported from Moscow. Associated Press writer Albert Aji contributed to this report from Damascus, Syria. Berry reported from Moscow. Associated Press writer Albert Aji in Damascus, Syria contributed to this report.
Copyright 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.Copyright 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.