120,000 People Displaced in Syria Due to Russian Airstrikes

The United Nations announced on Tuesday, October 27, that over 120,000 more people in Syria have been displaced due to Russian airstrikes. According to Reuters, the UN states that more than 120,000 people have been displaced as a result of recent clashes in Idlib, Hama, and Aleppo, which have been the main focus of Russian airstrikes. This number is more than double the 50,000 that the UN had predicted earlier this month. Russia claims to have destroyed over 800 terrorist targets since the start of its airstrikes on September 30. The Russian government asserts that the main targets of these attacks are terrorist groups and extremist Islamists, while the US government claims that Russia is also attacking moderate rebels. Over the four years of the Syrian civil war, more than six million people have been displaced and forced to migrate. The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, in its first report on the impact of Russian airstrikes on civilian life, also stated that hospitals have been targeted and women and children have been killed by cluster bombs. The report notes that due to the advance of the Islamic State forces, the road between Hama and Aleppo has been cut off, putting at risk the situation of 700,000 people living in government-controlled areas of Aleppo. An accompanying map in the UN report shows the migration and escape routes of people towards the north and areas controlled by Kurdish forces. This map also identifies seven main centers of Russian airstrikes: five in areas controlled by the group known as the al-Nusra Front, one in the territory of the Islamic State, and another in disputed areas. According to UN statistics, about 80,000 people have fled Idlib so far, but local humanitarian organizations estimate this number to be over 100,000. In the Aleppo area, about 50,000 people have been displaced between October 15 and 25.