The Syrian regime has stepped up its aerial bombing of several towns and cities in the province of Idlib in northwest Syria. This has led to a number of deaths and injuries and the destruction of property and residential buildings. The international charity Save the Children yesterday announced that a maternity hospital that it sponsors was hit by the bombing and this led to a number of casualties.

A spokesman for the charity told Reuters news agency that the number of victims of the bombing was not yet known, while the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights mentioned that “warplanes carried out raids on the city of Kafr Takarim in the north western countryside of Idlib and targeted a hospital and a civil defence centre”.

The spokesman also pointed out that this is the only maternity hospital in Kafr Takarim, the birthplace of the late nationalist Syrian leader Ibrahim Hanano. Approximately 1,300 women and children visit it per month and 340 women gave birth there in the last month.

This is not the first time that hospitals have been bombed in Syria, especially in the provinces of Idlib and Halaz. Airstrikes on the Al-Shaer neighbourhood in the city of Aleppo last week led to the closure of four hospitals and a blood bank.

The news website Eldorar reported that six people were killed after the town Salqin was targeted by Russian aircraft. In addition to this, more than six missile strikes were carried out on the city of Kafr Takarim. The extent of the damage caused is still unknown. An airstrike was also carried out on the city of Bansh in which three people, including two women, were killed.

Russian planes have been launching sporadic raids on towns and cities in Idlib that are under the control of the opposition for more than a week. The alleged reason for this is that they are targeting Al-Nusra Front sites. However, there have been no reports that any sites have been hit, and the raids mainly hit residential neighbourhoods.