BEIRUT: Air strikes pounded Syria's rebel-held Idlib province on Wednesday, killing at least nine people, including children, a war monitoring group said.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said planes, believed to be Russian, struck the northwestern city of Idlib and the town of Maarat Misrin in the countryside. </s> BEIRUT (AP) — Syrian activists say Russian and Syrian aircraft have stepped up their assaults on the rebel-held province of Idlib, a day after air raids killed more than 60 people.

The activist-run Local Coordination Committees is reporting airstrikes on the towns of Binnish, Maarat Nasaan, and Saraqib, as well as the provincial capital, Idlib.

The network says the Monday morning airstrikes killed three children. It blamed the attacks on Russian aircraft.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights also reported strikes on Idlib city. It says 288 civilians have been killed in the province since Oct. 20, when Syrian government and Russian aircraft intensified airstrikes.

The Syrian Civil Defense first responder group said 65 civilians were killed in Sunday airstrikes across the province, including attacks on two rural marketplaces that killed dozens.
A market in the town of Harem, Idlib province, is reportedly struck by Russian aircraft, killing 35 people including 12 children.