Idlib: Russian and Syrian raids and a four-way summit within days to discuss the crisis

Russian and Syrian warplanes launched raids on the villages of Joseph and Al-Fatira in Jabal Al-Zawiya in Idlib countryside on Sunday morning, while Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced holding a four-way summit with the leaders of Russia, France and Germany, to discuss the situation in Idlib.

Regime raids and Russia also targeted the city of Kafr Nabl, south of Idlib, with more than 18 strikes since last night. The Syrian Civil Defense in the opposition areas said that the Syrian regime's warplanes and artillery have targeted 12 areas in Idlib, with dozens of raids and missiles since yesterday evening.

The Civil Defense confirmed that several cities and towns have been bombed by the regime and Russia, although they are almost empty of residents.

Quad peak
On the other hand, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced the holding of a four-way summit on March 5, with the leaders of Russia, France and Germany, to discuss the situation in Idlib.

Erdogan did not specify the venue of the summit, but assured reporters that Macron and Merkel proposed to hold it in Istanbul, but Putin has not yet decided his position on this proposal.

Earlier, Erdogan telephoned French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel about the situation in Idlib, and called on them to "take concrete steps to prevent a humanitarian catastrophe."

The Turkish President also urged his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, during a second phone call to "restrain" the regime forces, stressing that the solution lies in returning to the Sochi Agreement signed in 2018, which allowed Turkey to establish military observation points in Idlib with the aim of deterring any attack by the Syrian regime in the region.

The activation of diplomatic efforts comes after the escalation of violence in Idlib led to mutual threats between Ankara and Moscow.

Turkish reinforcements
This comes as the Turkish army pushed new reinforcements deep into Idlib governorate. Ankara is threatening to launch an imminent attack in Idlib, after its forces were bombed by the Syrian regime, and Damascus has been given until the end of this month to redeploy its forces.

And yesterday, Saturday, a Turkish soldier was killed in a bombing of the Syrian regime forces in Idlib governorate, according to the Turkish Ministry of Defense, which added that the Turkish army responded to this "shameful attack" by destroying 21 targets of the Syrian regime.

With this, the death toll will rise to 17 in the clashes that started early February.

The ministry had announced before the latest attack that Defense Minister Khulsi Akar had discussed with his Russian counterpart Sergei Shoygo by means of finding a solution to the violence in Idlib.