GENEVA (Sputnik) — The United Nations had to suspend planned humanitarian work in Syria under ceasefire agreements due to increased military activity in the targeted areas, a spokesperson for the UN Special Envoy for Syria said in a statement.
The suspension involves humanitarian work in a towns of Zabadani and Madaya near the border with Lebanon and mainly Shia villages of Fua and Kafraya in Syria's northwest.
"The UN calls on all concerned parties to fulfill their responsibilities in the protection of civilians and reach the necessary understandings in order to implement this agreement as soon as possible," the statement said.
On Thursday, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon met with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. Both sides affirmed their commitment to international humanitarian and human rights laws in the ongoing Syrian military campaigns.
Russia launched airstrikes against Islamic State jihadist group positions at the request of Syrian President Bashar Assad on Wednesday. Combat missions are being coordinated with the Baghdad Information Center, established with Russian, Iranian, Iraqi and Syrian forces.
A US-led coalition of over 60 nations have been carrying out attacks against ISIL targets in Syria and Iraq for over a year, sidestepping the UN Security Council and without coordination or approval of the Syrian government.
Death toll estimates for the civil war in Syria vary among organizations, but all exceed 200,000 people. The UN Refugee Agency reports that four years of civil war and internecine strife have led to over 4 million Syrians registering as refugees outside of the country and a further 7.6 million internally displaced.
