Syrian regime shelling killed seven children and two women on Saturday in northern rebel-held Idlib province, where Russia and Turkey agreed on a buffer zone, a monitoring group said.
The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said shells hit Jarjanaz village which lies on the inner edge of the 15-20 km (9-13 mile) deep zone.
The deal to create the demilitarized zone, running along the contact line between insurgent and government territory, staved off an army offensive against Idlib.
Intermittent exchanges of fire have broken out in northwest Syria since the agreement between Russia, a key Damascus ally, and Turkey, which backs some rebel factions.
The United Nations says nearly 3 million people live in the northwest region and has warned against a battle to restore state rule there.
Tahrir al-Sham and other hardline groups have refused to pull out their fighters from Idlib despite the de-militarized zone which was announced by rebel backer Ankara and Moscow in September to separate regime troops from rebel fighters in Idlib and adjacent areas.
Earlier this month, Moscow accused rebels of trying to wreck the deal, while rebels accused the Syrian army and its allies of attacking the region.
With Reuters
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