Department Spokesperson
The United States strongly condemns reported Assad regime artillery attacks and Russian airstrikes that killed civilians in western Aleppo and Idlib, yesterday. Reported artillery shelling on the Al-Atareb Surgical Hospital in western Aleppo killed several patients, including a child, and injured more than a dozen medical staff. This hospital’s coordinates had been shared with the UN-led deconfliction mechanism.
Additionally, Russian airstrikes struck Idlib near the Bab al-Hawa border crossing with Turkey, reportedly killing one civilian and putting access to much needed assistance at risk. Bab al-Hawa remains the only UN-authorized humanitarian border crossing in Syria and remains the most efficient and effective way to provide life-saving humanitarian assistance to approximately 2.4 million Syrians every month.
Civilians, including civilian medical personnel and facilities, must never be the target of military action. This violence must stop – we reiterate our call for a nationwide ceasefire.