The top executive for the Red Cross has said that personnel on the ground in Syria have not reported any Russian airstrikes on civilian targets including hospitals.
Russia was accused last week of bombing a number of hospitals in Syria, an allegation that has been flatly denied by the Russian Defense Ministry.
Western media have published a number of reports claiming that Russian jets are targeting civilians.
In the video below Dominik Stillhart, director of operations at the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), speaks to RT saying he is unaware of any such incidents.
RT reports:
The smear campaign against Russian military operating in Syria began last week, with media outlets citing reports from the London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights and the Syrian American Medical Society (SAMS) foundation based in Canfield, Ohio.
The Wall Street Journal reported on Friday that “Russian airstrikes hit nine hospitals in Syria this month.”
A statement from Russia’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Maria Zakharova, stressed that such reports show tremendous bias against Russia’s military efforts in Syria.
Russian Foreign Ministry calls out MSM reports on hospital strike in Syria https://t.co/dsclBPJMTCpic.twitter.com/g62KIRgel3
— RT (@RT_com) October 23, 2015
On October 25, the Human Rights Watch organization alleged that two airstrikes “the local residents believed to be Russian” killed a total of 59 civilians, including 33 children, in northern Homs on October 15.
The Kremlin spokesperson denied the allegations, stressing that a large number of these reports are in fact “hoaxes and deliberate lies.”
“Our military has reported on many occasions that the terrorists are taking cover in residential areas. In such cases Russian troops choose not to hit those targets,” Dmitry Peskov said.
‘Bogus!’ – Kremlin spokesman on HRW accusations of civilians killed in Russian airstrikes https://t.co/ryGYR0aTFIpic.twitter.com/ogQhNe054I
— RT (@RT_com) October 26, 2015
On Tuesday, the Russian Ministry of Defense summoned military attaches from NATO countries and Saudi Arabia, to clarify their countries’ allegations that Russian airstrikes in Syria have hit civilian targets.
The ministry demanded the military officials “give official validation to their statements, or issue a rebuttal,” Defense Ministry deputy head Anatoly Antonov said.
Niamh Harris