Smoke billows after a reported government air strike on Maaret al-Numan in Syria’s northwestern Idlib province, the country’s last major opposition bastion. PHOTO: AFPsyria

The United Nations on Thursday called for urgent action in northwest Syria, warning that “the risk of greater escalation grows by the hour.”

“The Secretary-General reiterates his call for an immediate ceasefire and expresses particular concern about the risk to civilians from escalating military actions,” spokesman Stephane Dujarric said in a statement.

“Without urgent action, the risk of even greater escalation grows by the hour.”

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The statement came after 29 Turkish soldiers were killed in the northwestern Syrian province of Idlib after an air strike on Thursday blamed on Damascus, as violence escalates in the already chaotic region.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres was following the situation with “grave concern,” Dujarric said.

“The Secretary-General reiterates that there is no military solution to the Syrian conflict,” he said, calling for a UN-facilitated peace process.

[AFP]

Vanguard News Nigeria.