Syria: UN urges Russia and Turkey to secure ‘fresh ceasefire’ as risk of military escalation grows
(VOVWORLD) - The UN Secretary-General António Guterres built on his impassioned call earlier in the day for Syrian Government forces backed by Russia, who are attempting to drive the last opposition forces out of Idlib, backed by Turkish forces, to “step back from the edge of further escalation.
”On Thursday, following strikes on Turkish troops inside Syria, the Turkish Ministry of Defence said that 33 of its soldiers were killed, and 32 wounded, by strikes it attributed to the Syrian Government. Warning of the potential “dramatic impacts” of further direct confrontation, Mr. Guterres told the Council - which met only Wednesday on Syria to consider Idlib's unfolding humanitarian disaster - that the risk of fighting spiraling out of control, “taking into account the volume of the forces that are in Idlib, and around Idlib, is something that cannot be taken lightly.”