WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Jim Risch (R-Idaho), chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today released the following statement regarding an increase in attacks against civilians in Idlib, Syria:
“The increase in attacks and violence against the Syrian people in Idlib is deplorable. Assad, Russia, Iran, and the Iranian proxy force Hezbollah have increased assaults on civilians in northwest Syria, targeting hospitals and residential areas. Innocent civilians who have survived almost nine years of this brutal conflict are yet again targets of violence. The humanitarian crisis created by the Assad regime and its backers continues to get worse.
“As the lead sponsor of the Caesar Syrian Civilian Protection Act, I will continue to press for Assad and his backers to be held accountable for their unrelenting atrocities against the Syrian people. It is time the Assad regime and its Russian and Iranian backers cease indiscriminate targeting of Syria’s civilian population and uphold their commitments under the Idlib deconfliction agreement, as well as UN Security Council Resolutions 2254 and 2449. The United States will not forget the plight of the Syrian people.”
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