Syrian hospital destroyed, 9 missing

“A building that housed a hospital supported by MSF was destroyed on Monday by aircraft, presumably Russian,” near Maaret al-Numan in the northern province of Idlib, said the British-based monitor. The raids also left dozens wounded, said the Observatory, which relies on a network of sources on the ground. 

MSF also confirmed the air strikes. It did not give a death toll but said at least eight members of staff were missing after four rockets hit the 30-bed facility, which had 54 staff, two operating theatres, an outpatients’ department and an emergency room. 

“This appears to be a deliberate attack on a health structure, and we condemn this attack in the strongest possible terms,” said Massimiliano Rebaudengo, the head of MSF’s Syria mission. 

The organisation supports around 150 hospitals in Syria and was the sole medical access to around 40,000 people. Russian warplanes have conducted air strikes in Syria since September 30 in support of President Bashar al-Assad’s forces.