Five civilians were injured in a Russian airstrike in Syria's northwestern Idlib province, according to the White Helmets civil defense agency on Wednesday.

The attack targeted civilian settlements in the al-Rami village in southern Idlib, the agency said.

The White Helmets said two children were among those injured in the attack.

In September 2018, Turkey and Russia agreed to turn Idlib into a de-escalation zone in which acts of aggression would be strictly prohibited.

Turkey and Russia, which back opposing sides in the Syrian civil war, agreed on March 5 to halt military activities in the northwestern Idlib region after an escalation of violence displaced nearly 1 million people and brought the two sides close to confrontation.

Idlib has long been under siege by the Bashar Assad regime forces and its allies, with previous cease-fires in the region having been plagued with violations.

Since April 2018, attacks on the last opposition stronghold have dramatically intensified and caused new waves of refugees to move toward the Turkish border, putting Turkey, which already hosts 3.7 million Syrians, in a difficult position.

Syria has been ravaged by a civil war since early 2011 when the Assad regime cracked down on pro-democracy protesters.

Hundreds of thousands of people have been killed and more than 10 million displaced, according to U.N. estimates.