UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres strongly condemned airstrikes in northwest Syria following reports that four health facilities werehit during a single day of bombing.
An ambulance centre, a clinic and two hospitals includingone in Maarat al Numan that is among the largest in the area were attacked onWednesday, according to the Union of Medical Care and Relief Organizations, aSyrian doctors’ group.
“Civilians and civilian infrastructure, includingmedical facilities, must be protected,” said Guterres in a statementreleased by his spokesman on Thursday.
The United Nations had shared the coordinates of thehospital in Maarat al Numan with the warring parties, the statement said.
“Parties to the conflict must respect their obligationsunder international humanitarian law,” Guterres said, adding that thosebehind the attacks must be held accountable.
Backed by Russia, Syrian forces have since late April rampedup bombardment of the Idlib region, which is controlled by the jihadist groupHayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS).
The United Nations has warned that an all-out offensive topush out the rebels could lead to a bloodbath in the region where some threemillion people live.
UN aid chief Mark Lowcock last month said he had askedRussia to explain how it uses data on the location of Syrian hospitalsfollowing a string of attacks on health facilities.
More than 23 hospitals have been hit by strikes since lateApril in a campaign that Western powers have said is aimed at sowing terroramong civilians.
Russia has firmly denied that the bombing campaign hastargeted hospitals and maintains the military operation is aimed at driving out”terrorists.”
The war in Syria, now in its ninth year, has killed morethan 370,000 people and displaced millions since it started with the brutalrepression of anti-government protests.