Four children among victims of attacks in Syria

Four children were among the victims of air strikes in the town of Ammanaz, a few miles from the border, the British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said on Saturday.

An AFP news agency correspondent, who visited Armanazin on Saturday, said all apartment blocks were destroyed by the bombing.

It was not immediately clear whether the attack was carried out by Syrian government planes or its Russian allies.

According to the Observatory, collecting her information from a network of sources within Syria, dozens of people are still missing after the bombing.

Middle air strikes were carried out after a search-saving operation was under way for victims, the monitors said.

Turkish news agency Anadolu reported that at least 40 civilians were killed and another 70 were injured in Ammanaz, an Oranews broadcast.

The wide extent of the bombings has forced hospitals in the province to close, the organisation “The ministers without Borders” said on Friday.

Syrian and Russian planes have intensified attacks on Idlib. The increase in air bombings began after the rebels launched an offensive against areas held by the government in the northwest of the country on 19 September.

Last month, Russia, Turkey and Iran agreed to create an area “de-escalation” in the province as part of their efforts to establish a widespread ceasefire in war-torn Syria.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan agreed on Thursday to step up efforts to create a secure area in Idlib.

Syria has been locked up in a fierce civil war since early 2011, when the government of President Bashar al-Assad hit pro-democracy protests.

Since then, hundreds of thousands of people have been killed and more than 10 million displaced, according to the United Nations.