UN urges Russia to avoid civilian deaths in Syria

NEW YORK

Russia and other nations conducting airstrikes in Syria must take every possible measure to avoid civilian casualties and any damage to civilian property, the United Nations said Monday.

"Everything should be done to avoid any damage, any casualties to civilians and it should be done within international law," UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said in response to an Anadolu Agency question on recent attacks by Russia and Syrian regime forces on Turkmen-populated areas in northwestern Syria.

Thousands of Turkmens have been recently displaced due to simultaneous air and ground attacks by Syrian government forces and Russian jets. Approximately 2,000 Syrian Turkmen have arrived in southern Turkey in the past several days.

"The violence, whether it come from the air or from the ground, is only increasing the risk of massive displacement," said Dujarric.

Turkmens are a Turkic ethnic group based largely in Syria and Iraq, where they live alongside large Arab and Kurdish populations. The Turkmen community, which includes Sunni and Shia Muslims, shares close cultural ties with Turkey.