(Zaman Al Wasl)- People of rebel-held areas in northern Syria came out to streets to rally against the regime in spite of a fragile buffer zone deal and the heavy bombardment.
As every Friday for the past 14 weeks, demonstrators held up the three-star flag of the Syrian revolution and placards recalling the first days of the Syrian revolution in 2011, saying their goal is the toppling of the Assad regime, chanting ‘‘The people want the fall of the (Assad) regime.’’
A remarkable demonstration took place in the famed village of Kafranbel after two of its prominent activists and citizen journalists, Raed al-Fares and Hamoud Junaid, were killed by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham militants last Friday.
The formerly known as Jabhat al-Nusra is the dominant force in Idlib, has killed most of its opponents including citizen journalists and human rights advocates.
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.
On Friday, the regime artillery pounded most of rebel-held areas in Idlib, Hama and Aleppo provinces, such an escalation followed the Israeli airstrikes on an Iranian site south of Damascus, local activists said.
The heavy artillery hit different parts in rebel-held areas, pushing more than 10,000 people to flee their villages in the southern countryside of Idlib.
The United Nations says nearly 3 million people live in the northwest region and has warned against a battle to restore state rule there.
On Thursday, 4 civilians, including children, were killed in regime artillery fire at Jarjanaz village, which lies on the inner edge of the 15-20 km (9-13 mile) deep zone, White Helmets rescuing agency said.
Last Saturday, the regime shelling killed seven children and two women in Jarjanaz.
Since the Syrian revolution erupted in 2011, more than 470,000 people have been killed, and more than 6 million people have been displaced.
Zaman Al Wasl
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