MOSCOW, August 19. /TASS/. Militants, who operate in the Idlib de-escalation zone, have shelled the Syrian positions in the Idlib and Aleppo regions from the Turkey-controlled areas, wounding two Syrian troops, Vadim Kulit, deputy chief of the Russian Center for Reconciliation of the Opposing Parties in Syria, said.
"Two servicemen of the Syrian Armed Forces have been wounded in the mortar fire opened by terrorists against government forces at Qafer Battih, Idlib Province," Kulit said at a briefing on Wednesday night.
Moreover, militants of illegal armed groups, who operate in the area controlled by the Turkish Armed Forces in the Aleppo region, launched an artillery strike from the area of Azaz against the government forces near Maraanaz.
In the past 24 hours, 25 incidents of shelling by the Jabhat al-Nusra terrorist group (banned in Russia) were documented in the Idlib de-escalation zone, including 20 episodes reported by the Syrian side. Fourteen incidents were recorded in Idlib Province, eight in Latakia Province, two in Aleppo Province and one more in Hama Province.
"The Russian Center for Reconciliation of Opposing Parties calls on the commanders of illegal armed groups to stop armed provocations and to embark on the path of peaceful settlement in the areas under their control," Kulit said.
The Russian reconciliation center continues to fulfill assigned tasks after the completion of the military campaign in Syria. The center’s officers regularly travel around the country's liberated areas to assess the humanitarian situation. The main efforts of the Russian military are now focused on assistance to the refugees returning to their homes and evacuation of civilians from de-escalation zones.
On December 29, 2014, Russia’s Supreme Court handed down a ruling declaring the Jabhat al-Nusra jihadist group to be a terrorist organization. It is outlawed in Russia.