russia resumed large-scale airstrikes around syria on tuesday, which the u.s. and its allies fear could lead to a devastating assault on the besieged city of aleppo and set off a wider humanitarian crisis. the strikes, which included the use of kaliber cruise missiles, hit the provinces of idlib and homs, defense minister sergei shoigu said at a meeting with russian president vladimir putin. <u+201c>we started a large operation to deliver massive fire strikes on isis and jabhat al-nusra positions in the provinces of idlib and homs,<u+201d> mr. shoigu said, using an acronym for islamic state. al nusra, a jihadist group fighting the syrian regime, is linked to al qaeda. its leaders claim to have severed ties with the international terrorist organization. the latest russian strikes didn<u+2019>t target aleppo, defense ministry spokesman maj. gen. igor konashenkov told interfax. mr. shoigu, however, said factories used to make chemical weapons were also being targeted and destroyed. last week, the russian government accused u.s.-backed rebels in aleppo of using chemical weapons , charges the rebels denied. the airstrikes are being launched from a flotilla of russian warships off the coast of syria, including russia<u+2019>s sole aircraft carrier, the admiral kuznetsov. the flotilla caused international outrage and was denied refueling in spain . the north atlantic treaty organization carefully monitored the warships along the route. regime helicopters dropped barrel bombs on east aleppo, killing at least three people and leaving a number of others wounded, said the u.k.-based opposition monitoring group syrian observatory for human rights. warplanes also launched rockets on the area, the group said, without identifying if the planes were russian or syrian. russia is a major ally of the syrian regime. <u+201c>all the ways to reach a settlement and national reconciliation with the militants have [failed], because of the militants<u+2019> stubbornness in the eastern neighborhoods of aleppo,<u+201d> an unidentified source told the pro-government syrian newspaper al watan on monday. the syrian government often refers to the opposition as militants. the syrian army sent text messages to rebels<u+2019> cellphones telling them to leave aleppo by monday, the source said, adding that the army had moved from <u+201c>defense to attack<u+201d> positions. more than 25 airstrikes carried out by syrian helicopters and russian jets also hit east aleppo, according to sharif alhalbi, a local activist. <u+201c>people are in a panic at the moment,<u+201d> he said. <u+201c>this mad shelling came after calm days, and people weren<u+2019>t prepared. lots of people were out this morning seeking food when [it] resumed.<u+201d> at least four towns in idlib province were also struck by barrel bombs and ballistic missiles on tuesday, said ibrahim sattouf, a resident in the province, hitting targets frequented by civilians including a school, market and fuel station. they also hit a base used by the free syrian army, a rebel group backed by the u.s., in the town of kafr anbel, he said. the u.s. state department condemned the resumption of strikes. <u+201c>the most recent reported attacks are on five hospitals and one mobile clinic in syria,<u+201d> spokeswoman elizabeth trudeau said tuesday. <u+201c>we believe it<u+2019>s a violation of international law.<u+201d> russia<u+2019>s military involvement in syria, where it backs the regime of president bashar al-assad, has drawn international criticism. mr. putin and u.s. president-elect donald trump spoke by phone on monday on a range of issues, including their common pledge to combat <u+201c>the common enemy no. 1<u+2014>international terrorism and extremism,<u+201d> the kremlin said, adding that the resolution of the syria crisis was also discussed. unlike the obama administration, mr. trump has taken a more conciliatory tone toward russian intervention in syria, saying that the u.s. should stop pursuing regime change there and focus on islamic state. mr. trump has suggested that he could end u.s. military aid to moderate rebel groups saying <u+201c>we<u+2019>re backing rebels against syria, and we have no idea who these people are.<u+201d> though rebels have long said the u.s. only provides a small amount of military aid<u+2014>namely antitank missiles<u+2014>the weapons have played an important role in battles against both the syrian regime and islamic state militants. the missiles have been deployed against the regime in the ongoing battle for aleppo city. losing those weapons would deprive the opposition of one of the most advanced weapons in their cache. relations between russia and the u.s. have deteriorated over the crises in syria and ukraine. a syrian cease-fire brokered by russia and the u.s. in september fell apart days after it went into effect. since oct. 18, russia said it has observed a humanitarian pause around the besieged northern city of aleppo. <u+2014>raja abdulrahim and felicia schwartz contributed to this article.
russia resumes airstrikes in syrian provinces - wsj
amie ferris-rotman