The delay in the supposed “cessation of hostilies” in Syria continues to be cynically exploited by the Russian air force to indiscriminately bomb areas held by non-Daesh opposition to Assad. Reports are coming in of one hospital run by Medecins San Frontiers (Doctors Without Borders) being hit by Russian bombings killing 9 and another hit by multiple rocket fire.
10 people are reported killed in rocket attacks and of a hospital in Azaz in Aleppo province. At the moment it is unclear who fired these missiles or whether this hospital was in use or if it was being used by civilians to shelter. Abu Thaer al-Halabi, head of the media office for the Aleppo town council claims the attack was carried out by Russian fighter jets. The main road used for the delivery of humanitarian supplies was also destroyed.
The other strike definitely committed by Russia was against an operational MSF hospital.
Meanwhile, suspected Russian air strikes also targeted a hospital run by Doctors Without Borders (MSF) in the town of Maaret al-Numan in Idlib province, killing at least nine people, including a child, the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported.
A spokesman for the Syria Civil Defence in Idlib confirmed that the hospital was hit but said four people were killed.
"At least four people have been killed while several others have been injured. We expect the death toll to rise," Radi said, without stating his full name.
This follows an airraid last week on another MSF hospital.
Airstrikes have hit an MSF-supported hospital in Dara’a governorate, southern Syria, killing three people and wounding at least six, including a nurse, says Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF).
The strike on Tafas field hospital, some 12 km from the Jordanian border, took place on the night of 5 February. It caused partial damage to the hospital building, and put its heavily-used ambulance service out of action. In fear for their lives, more than 20,000 people from Tafas town fled to the surrounding countryside. The hospital is the latest medical facility to be hit in a series of airstrikes in southern Syria, which have been escalating over the past two months.
On February 5, another MSF hospital was hit in Derra in what looks like a continuing and deliberate campaign.
MSF, which operates medical facilities inside Syria and supports directly more than 150 others, said last week that such incidents were further depleting Syria's already exhausted healthcare system and preventing more people from accessing desperately needed medical care.
Since the start of this year alone, 14 health facilities in Syria have been hit, which MSF said confirmed that hospitals and clinics were no longer places where patients could recover in safety.
Let there be no doubt. These are war crimes and crimes against humanity.