Russian airstrikes kill 18 in Aleppo: Local sources

By Halit Suleyman

ALEPPO, Syria

At least 18 people were killed and more than a dozen others injured on Tuesday by Russian airstrikes in Syria’s northern Aleppo province, according to a Syrian civil defense official.

Ibrahim Ibrahim, who is based in Aleppo’s town of Atarib, told Anadolu Agency that five civil defense workers had been killed when Russian jets targeted a local civil defense center.

"The Russians didn’t only strike the center with warplanes, they also used missiles fired by their navy," Ibrahim asserted.

Ibrahim Abu-Leith, another civil defense official, said another 13 people had been killed when Russian jets targeted Aleppo city’s Al-Fardos, Al-Haydaruya and Al-Shear neighborhoods.

Russia began its military intervention in Syria in September of last year, reportedly after a formal request by the embattled Bashar al-Assad regime for help against armed opposition groups.

In March, Russia announced a partial reduction of its forces deployed in the war-ravaged country.

According to a tally compiled by Anadolu Agency, more than 361,000 people have been killed in Syria since the conflict erupted in 2011.