Suspected Russian raid kills 13 in northwestern Syria

By Khalid Suleiman

DAMASCUS

At least 13 civilians were killed Monday by a suspected Russian airstrike in Syria’s northwestern Idlib province, according to a pro-opposition civil defense official.

A warplane struck a residential neighborhood in Ariha town in Idlib’s northern countryside, Mohamed Hashem told Anadolu Agency.

He said three buildings have been destroyed in the raid.

“Around 30 people are still trapped under rubble,” Hashem said.

Monday’s attack came despite a ceasefire -- brokered by Turkey and Russia -- that went into effect in Syria last December.

Syria has been locked in a vicious civil war since early 2011, when the regime of Bashar al-Assad cracked down on pro-democracy protests -- which erupted as part of the Arab Spring uprisings -- with unexpected ferocity.

Since then, more than a quarter of a million people have been killed and upwards of 10 million displaced across the war-torn country, according to the UN. The Syrian Center for Policy Research puts the death toll at more than 470,000.