UN warns of deepening Syria crisis and calls for de-escalation and political action

White Helmets director accuses Al Assad government of deliberately attacking civilians and vital infrastructure

Displaced people who fled from the Aleppo countryside sit on the back of a truck in Tabqa, Syria. Reuters

Smoke billows near residential buildings in Aleppo. Reuters

Abu Mohammed Al Golani, leader of Syria's Al Qaeda affiliate, second from right, discusses battlefield details with commanders in Aleppo, in 2016. AP

The director of the Syrian White Helmets, Raed Al Saleh, speaks to the UN Security Council as it holds an emergency meeting on Syria at the UN headquarters in New York. AFP

People queue to receive bread outside a bakery in Aleppo. Reuters

Smoke billows in the Syrian town of Suran, between Aleppo and Hama. AFP

An anti-regime fighter tears off a poster depicting Syrian President Bachar Al Assad, left, and his brother Maher, at the airport in Aleppo. AFP

Syrian Kurds flee their homes in the outskirts of Aleppo. AFP

Medics inspect the damaged Ibn Sina Hospital following a Russian air strike, in Idlib, northern Syria. EPA

Syrian opposition fighters stand on an aircraft at the Al-Nayrab military airport after they took control of the facility in the outskirts of Aleppo, Syria. AP

People injured in airstrikes receive medical treatment at a hospital in Idlib, northern Syria. EPA

Militants gather at the Nayrab military airport, in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo. AFP

A view of a vehicle on fire in the aftermath of what the White Helmets say is a strike, in Idlib, Syria. Reuters

Anti-government fighters celebrate as they take over the northern Syrian town of Tal Rifaat. AFP

A nurse attends to an injured woman in Idlib, Syria. Government air strikes in Idlib killed at least three civilians, including two children, and wounded 11 others, said the Syrian Civil Defence. AP

People cross an anti-government checkpoint as they return to the town of Saraqib in the eastern part of Idlib province. AFP

The UN’s envoy for Syria, Geir Pedersen, has called for an immediate end to the escalating violence in the war-torn country, warning of dire consequences if the crisis deepens further.

Mr Pedersen told the UN Security Council that de-escalation must be paired with a “credible political horizon” to address the aspirations of the Syrian people.

“If we do not see de-escalation and a rapid move to a serious political process, involving the Syrian parties and the key international players, then I fear we will see a deepening of the crisis,” he said on Tuesday.

Fourteen years of conflict have proven there is no military solution to the Syrian crisis, Mr Pedersen said.

The extremist rebel group Hayat Tahrir Al Sham and its allies based in Idlib province last week launched a surprise attack on government troops in neighbouring Aleppo province, seizing the provincial capital and Syria's second city in a lightning offensive.

Syria's army command said its troops were striking “terrorist organisations” in north Hama and Idlib provinces, with air support from Russia, a vital ally of President Bashar Al Assad. It said reinforcements were arriving and reported “fierce battles”, particularly in the north of Hama province.

Addressing the 15-member Security Council, Raed Al Saleh, the director of Syrian Civil Defence, known as the White Helmets, accused the Syrian government, Russia and Iranian-backed militias of deliberately attacking civilians and vital infrastructure, including schools, hospitals and camps for displaced people in northwest Syria.

“The White Helmets have responded to 275 attacks,” Mr Al Saleh said. “These attacks have killed 100 civilians at least. They have wounded 360 others. These attacks have displaced tens of thousands of residents, most of whom are women and children.”

Mr Saleh also accused the international community of having "utterly failed the Syrian people."

"The Syrian people have appealed to you to take immediate action to end atrocities and ensure peace...however, in recent years, you have not only failed to heed these calls, but, tragically, many of your governments have chosen to forget Syria altogether," he said to the Security Council.

Russia's UN envoy Vasily Nebenzya criticised UN officials for being "unable to summon the courage to call a spade a spade and to condemn these terrorist attacks" against Syria.

Deputy US ambassador Robert Wood refuted the criticism, saying: "the fact that HTS is listed as a terrorist organisation by the US and UN does not justify the further atrocities by the Assad regime and its Russian backers."

“For many years, the Syrian government has been engaged in the civil war, backed by Iran, Russia and Hezbollah,” Mr Wood said. “All three of those actors have recently been distracted and weakened by conflicts elsewhere and so it is no surprise that we have seen actors in Syria try to take advantage of that over the last several days.”

Hayat Tahrir has been designated as a terrorist group by the US and UN. “We obviously have concerns about this group,” said Mr Wood. “We will continue to fully defend and protect US personnel and US military positions, which remain essential to ensuring that ISIS can never again resurge in Syria.”

Syria claimed that recent rebel attacks could not have been executed without approval from Turkey and Israel.

“Would you accept this terrorist attack by a terrorist group that was listed by the Security Council against any of your countries or, I guess, any country that's a member of the United Nations?” asked Koussay Aldahhak, Syria's UN representative.

Syria urged the Council to issue a “clear and unequivocal” condemnation of attacks carried out by “an organisation listed as a terrorist entity by the UN, comprising tens of thousands of foreign terrorists”.