Sky News crew, civilians come under Syrian regime attack in Idlib

Syrian government forces attacked a group of journalists and civilians in Idlib province, the last rebel outpost in Syria, British broadcaster Sky News reported.

Sky's special correspondent Alex Crawford and her crew were filming in the town of Al Habit when they were attacked in a series of strikes on Tuesday.

The crew said military drones were first used to pinpoint their location.

"The Sky News crew - clearly identified as journalists - was deliberately targeted and attacked by Syrian regime forces using military drones to pinpoint our location, before launching a series of strikes," Crawford wrote for the Sky News website.

"We were with two civilian political activists when our small group of five was tracked, targeted and fired upon by regime forces helped by Russian airpower as they bombarded Al Habit town in the countryside of Idlib."

One of the two civilian activists who were with the news crew at the time of the attack, was hit by shrapnel and was later taken to hospital.

A ceasefire, brokered by Russia and Turkey last year, is supposed to be in place, meaning Al Habit should be a battle-free area.

Idlib has come under a ferocious three-week offensive by regime and Russian forces, although bombing has been scaled down in recent days.

The Union of Medical Care & Relief Organisations reported that 229 civilians have been killed in the assault on opposition areas of Idlib and Hama.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights has reported that 665 people have been killed in 23 days of bombing.

There have also been reports of chlorine being used in the opposition province this month, according to the Idlib Health Directorate.

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