Fighting in Idlib Governorate Displaces 18,500 From Late November to Dec 12 - UN Spokesman
The United Nations remains concerned about ongoing hostilities in the Syrian province of Idlib, where more than 18,000 people have been displaced over the past week, UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric told reporters on Thursday.
"Between late November and December 12, over 18,500 women and children and men were reportedly displaced with the vast majority moving within the Idlib governorate," Dujarric said. "The new displacement comes on top of the more than 1 million women and children and men facing long-term displacement in the governorate, many of them having been displaced multiple times."
The UN urges all parties to respect their obligations under international humanitarian law and international human rights law, Dujarric said.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan agreed during September talks in the Russian resort city of Sochi to set up a demilitarized zone in Idlib along the contact line between armed opposition groups and Syrian government forces.
The agreement eased fears of massive civilian casualties from an anticipated military offensive by Turkish or Syrian ground troops to clear Idlib of terrorists, including the al-Qaeda-linked Nursa front (banned in Russia) and more than a dozen other armed groups.
Russia estimates that about about 15,000 Nusra Front terrorists remain in the governorate.