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Russia: the attack by the Syrian regime on Idlib does not violate any agreements with Turkey
The Russian Information Agency quoted Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov as saying on Monday that the Syrian regime's attack on Idlib, backed by Russia, does not violate any agreements with Turkey.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on Friday that attacks by the Syrian regime army in the northwest caused a humanitarian crisis and threatened Turkish national security, the presidency said.
Syrian regime forces encircled opposition fighters and a Turkish military post in northwestern Syria to recover the land and towns it lost in the early days of the war.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights confirmed that 60 people were killed by the regime, armed factions and civilians in northwestern Syria on Sunday during clashes that broke out east of Khan Sheikhoun in the southern countryside of Idlib.
The observatory also added that the regime forces tried to advance from the axis of Tamanah east of Khan Sheikhoun from their positions in Tal Taraa amid intensive ground and air preparation.
According to Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, Syrian regime forces have mobilized on Saturday as part of military reinforcements north of the strategic city of Khan Sheikhoun in southern Idlib, in an attempt to continue their progress in the region after it was able to encircle a Turkish observation post.
The regime forces, on Friday, took control of all towns and villages that were under the control of opposition factions in the northern countryside of Hama, after advancing south of Khan Sheikhoun, over which it took full control on Wednesday.
The Syrian regime is desperate
The regime's objective is to restore the part of the international road linking Damascus and Aleppo through Idlib, as a vital artery linking the most important cities from Aleppo in the north to Hama and Homs in the center, then Damascus to the Jordanian border in the south, of course with Russian support.
After over three months of heavy Syrian and Russian bombardment of areas in Idlib and parts of neighboring provinces, regime forces began an offensive on 8 January, which managed to recapture several towns in the southern countryside of Idlib and Northern Hama, where they cordoned off, on Friday, the largest Turkish observation post. In the town of Morek.
In return, Turkey, which supports opposition factions, has deployed 12 observation posts in Idlib and its environs, under agreements with Russia supporting the Syrian regime, avoiding an attack that has long been waged by Damascus. The latter accuses Ankara of stalling the implementation of an agreement to establish a demilitarized zone in and around Idlib.
