BEIRUT: Shelling by government forces targeting several locations in rebel-held northwest Syria killed seven civilians including four children on Saturday, a war monitor said.
The Damascus regime has been bombing opposition-held areas in apparent retaliation for an attack on a military academy graduation ceremony in Homs on Thursday that killed dozens of people.
“Seven civilians, including four children, were killed in ground bombardment by regime forces on several locations” on Saturday, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights war monitor reported.
It said three civilians, among them two children, died when government forces shelled a market and homes in the city of Idlib, and two more children were killed in shelling on the Idlib countryside.
Two men were also killed in separate bombardments in Aleppo and Idlib provinces, said the Britain-based monitor which has a wide network of sources inside Syria.
Swathes of Idlib province and parts of the neighboring Aleppo, Hama and Latakia provinces are controlled by Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS), led by Al-Qaeda’s former Syria branch.
The Observatory said that more than 30 people, mostly civilians, had been killed in government bombardment of rebel-held areas since the Homs attack on Thursday.
State media said the attack on the academy had killed 89, while the Observatory reporting a higher toll of 123 dead.
No group has claimed responsibility for the Homs attack, but the Syrian army accused “armed terrorist organizations” for the attack that used “explosive-laden drones,” and vowed to “respond with full force.”
HTS is considered a terrorist group by Damascus, as well as by the United States and United Nations.
Civil war erupted in Syria after President Bashar Assad’s government crushed peaceful protests in 2011.
The conflict has killed more than half a million people and displaced millions after spiralling into a devastating war involving foreign armies, militias and militants.
Regime shelling kills seven civilians in Syria: Monitor
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Regime shelling kills seven civilians in Syria: Monitor
- Seven civilians, including four children, were killed in ground bombardment by regime forces on several locations
- Two men were also killed in separate bombardments in Aleppo and Idlib provinces
EU urges Israel to halt NGO registration law, warns it puts aid for Gaza at risk
- Legislation could severely restrict ability of humanitarian groups to provide aid for civilians amid one of the worst humanitarian crises in the world, officials say
- Without nongovernmental organizations ‘humanitarian aid cannot be delivered at the scale needed to prevent further loss of life in Gaza,’ European Council warns
NEW YORK CITY: The EU on Tuesday urged Israeli authorities not to implement in its current form a new law governing the registration of international nongovernmental organizations, warning it could jeopardize life-saving humanitarian operations in Gaza and the other occupied Palestinian territories.
In a joint statement, the EU’s high representative for foreign affairs and security policy, Kaja Kallas, and Commissioners Hadja Lahbib and Dubravca Suica said the law could severely restrict the ability of international aid organizations to operate and deliver assistance to civilians amid one of the worst humanitarian crises in the world.
The European Council highlighted the need for “rapid, safe and unimpeded” delivery of aid and warned that without nongovernmental organizations, “humanitarian aid cannot be delivered at the scale needed to prevent further loss of life in Gaza.”
The new law, adopted by the Israeli government after the introduction of new registration requirements in March 2025, obliges foreign humanitarian organizations to provide detailed information about their operations, including full lists of local and foreign staff, as a condition for registering to operate in Palestinian areas.
Dozens of aid groups, including Doctors Without Borders, World Vision and Oxfam, face having their accreditation revoked or licenses suspended after failing to meet the new criteria by the Dec. 31 deadline that was set. Israeli authorities have said organizations that fail to meet the new requirements must cease all activities by March 1.
Critics say the rules risk undermining humanitarian principles and could endanger local staff. The Israeli measures drew international condemnation and warnings from UN agencies, which said international NGOs provide essential “humanitarian lifelines” in Gaza where they are delivering most of the healthcare, nutritional, water and sanitation services amid ongoing restrictions and closures of border crossings.
The humanitarian situation in Gaza remains dire, UN agencies have said, with winter conditions compounding the suffering of displaced populations living in makeshift shelters that expose them to heavy rain, flooding and cold.
Hundreds of thousands of people in the territory have received emergency food, shelter and winter supplies, and while famine conditions have eased since the ceasefire agreement in October, acute food insecurity, malnutrition and damage to infrastructure continues to take a toll.
The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said recent heavy rains have flooded tents, damaged homes and put a strain on already limited water, sanitation and health services, underscoring the need for sustained and unimpeded aid access.
The EU statement comes after the European Council on Dec. 18 welcomed a UN Security Council resolution for the establishment of a peace-building and stabilization force in Gaza, and urged all parties to implement it fully and in line with the principles of international law.
