22 dead in Idlib strikes

At least seven children were among 22 civilians killed in air strikes that hit a school and the surrounding area in Syria's northwestern Idlib province yesterday, a monitor said.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said "warplanes -- either Russia or Syrian -- carried out six strikes" in the village of Hass, including on a school complex.

The raids hit the village around 11:30 am, an activist with the opposition Idlib Media Centre told AFP.

"One rocket hit the entrance of the school as students were leaving to go home, after the school administration decided to end classes for the day because of the raids," the activist said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Other activists from the province circulated a gruesome photograph on social media of a child's arm, seared off above the elbow, still clutching the strap of a dusty black rucksack.

Idlib province is controlled by the Army of Conquest, an alliance of rebel groups and jihadists including the Fateh al-Sham Front, which changed its name from Al-Nusra Front after breaking off ties with Al-Qaeda earlier this year.

Meanwhile, Russia's seat on the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) is under threat due to its support of the Syrian government's air campaign in Aleppo, reports Aljazeera.

More than 80 human rights and aid organisations, including Human Rights Watch, CARE International and Refugees International, have urged UN member states to drop Russia from the Geneva-based Human Rights Council over its military campaign in Syria.

In a joint statement published on Monday, the organisations urged UN member states to "question seriously whether Russia's role in Syria - which includes supporting and undertaking military actions which have routinely targeted civilians and civilian objects - renders it fit to serve on the UN's premier inter-governmental human rights institution".