Opposition making gains in major Hama offensive

Heavy air strikes targeted areas of Hama province captured by opposition from government forces in recent days, as Damascus counter-attacked on Thursday in an area of strategic importance to President Bashar al-Assad.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said at least 25 civilians had been killed in the air strikes. Syrian state TV said the air force had launched "concentrated strikes" saying tens of them had been killed.

The Observatory said the 17 people had been killed in air strikes targeting a road between the town of al-Latamenah and Idlib province, an area of northwestern Syria that is mostly under opposition control.

Meanwhile, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov discussed cooperation in Syria with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry in a phone call on Thursday, the Russian foreign ministry said in a statement.

Evidence is growing that Russia is behind a significant increase in the use of cluster bombs in Syria, campaigners said Thursday. A coalition of NGOs led by Human Rights Watch (HRW) said in an annual study that more than 400 people were killed or maimed by the banned munitions in the world last year.

They linked the increased use of cluster bombs in Syria to Russian forces who are carrying out air strikes in support of President Bashar al-Assad's regime. "Since Russia began its joint operation with Syrian forces at the end last September, we have seen an increase in the number of cluster munition attacks on opposition-held areas," Mary Warenham, HRW's arms advocacy director and editor of the report, told a press conference. "And at the moment we see evidence of cluster munition attacks every week, if not almost every day, which is highly disturbing," Warenham added.

Russia has repeatedly denied using cluster bombs, which spray bomblets indiscriminately. HRW admitted it was difficult to determine whether it was specifically Russian or Syrian forces which had used the bombs. "Nonetheless, this is a joint military operation, so collectively together they are responsible for the actions of their coalition," Warenham said. A total of 248 people were killed or injured by the munitions in Syria last year, almost all civilians, the Cluster Munition Monitor report said.