Up to 40 Syrian soldiers have been killed in an assault by hundreds of militants in north-western Syria, according to Russia's defence ministry.
The ministry, which supports Syria's regime, said there were several attacks in which the militants seized two settlements in Idlib province.
Syrian state media said members of a jihadist alliance set off car bombs and used heavy fire as they targeted army positions in the Maarat al-Numan area.
But they did not mention casualties.
A Syrian military source was cited as saying army units were re-deployed to the area and eventually repelled the attacks "with high efficiency".
Naji al-Mustafa, spokesman for the National Liberation Front coalition of rebel groups, disputed the Syrian media and Russian government accounts and said no such assault had taken place on Wednesday or Thursday.
Mustafa said attacks had been carried out against regime forces earlier in the week as a response to stepped up strikes against them in Idlib, but the area had seen no operations over the past 24 hours.
Idlib is the last stronghold of the opposition to President Bashar al-Assad and is home to three million people, of whom 76% are women and children.
Meanwhile, rescue workers reported that Russian air strikes killed at least eight civilians across the region on Thursday.
The Syria Civil Defence, whose volunteers are known as the White Helmets, said a women and her two children died in the village of Arnabah after midnight, and that three children and two adults died when the town of Saraqeb was bombed, BBC reported.
On Tuesday, air strikes by Russian and Syrian government warplanes reportedly killed at least 28 people, including a family of eight in the village of Kfar Taal.
The incidents came as pro-regime forces continued their offensive in Idlib.
A cessation of hostilities agreement brokered by Russia and Turkey, which backs the opposition, went into effect earlier this month, but the violence has continued.
Around 36,000 more civilians have fled their homes in Idlib over the last two days and the number of displaced civilians reached 450,000 since November 2019 due to attacks of the regime and its allies.
According to Syria's Response Coordination Group, the displaced civilians headed to areas near the Turkish border due to the attacks which violate a cease-fire agreement between Turkey and Russia.
Mohammad Hallaj, the director of the group, told Anadolu Agency that the civilians left their homes in Darat Izzah, Atarib, Haiian, Hraytan, Anadan, Khan Tuman, Khan al-Asal, Kafr Naya, and al-Qasimia due to attacks supported by Russian air strikes.
As a result of Assad regime and Russia forces’ attacks, 36,007 civilians, consisting 11,691 families, became homeless in the last two days.
Approximately 450,000 civilians have been displaced from the settlements of Idlib’s southern, southeastern, and Aleppo’s western and southern rural areas since Nov. 2019.
Due to the rising displaced population, the tent camps in Idlib fail to meet the needs of war-weary Syrians as there is not enough space to set up more tents. Thousands of families are currently in dire need of humanitarian assistance.
Some displaced people arrived in tent camps along Turkey’s borderline and some fled to areas of Peace Spring and Olive Branch operations which Turkish army cleared of terrorists.
The UN has said the current crisis is compounding an already dire humanitarian situation in north-western Syria, where 32% of the newly displaced are living in camps or individual tents.
The winter weather is adding another layer of urgency to the situation, with flooding frequently affecting camps and informal settlements and many families seeking shelter in unfinished buildings.
There is also a shortage of medical supplies and functioning medical facilities. At least 50 health facilities have been attacked in Idlib in the past year.
(Zaman Al Wasl, Agencies)
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