The spokesperson of the European External Action Service (EEAS) denounced on Wednesday evening, 24 July, the latest attacks on civilian areas in north-west Syria, calling for their cessation.
"There is a worrying pattern of attacks on critical civilian infrastructure, including health facilities, school and water facilities by the Syrian regime and its allies and such attacks have to stop", the spokesperson said in a statement.
"Indiscriminate attacks and the destruction of civilian infrastructure cannot be justified under any circumstances", the statement warned.
The spokesperson said that the bombing of a market in Maraat al-Numan on 22 July, which killed 37 people, was "another shocking escalation in the worsening conflict in north-west Syria". Since the current offensive on Idlib began at the end of April, more than 650 civilians have been killed, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR).
The EEAS spokesperson recalled that all parties to the conflict are bound to respect and uphold international humanitarian law and to ensure unhindered humanitarian access to all people in need. "We expect the Syrian regime and the Astana guarantors to fulfil immediately their responsibilities and commitments and ensure the immediate protection of civilians", the spokesperson stressed, reiterating that all perpetrators of war crimes and crimes against humanity should be held accountable for their actions.
According to the spokesperson, these hostilities demonstrate, once again, that there can be no military solution to the conflict in Syria. The EU continues to press for an inclusive, genuine and comprehensive political transition according to UNSCR 2254 and the Geneva Communiqué, the spokesperson said. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)