Turkey raids pro- govt forces in Afrin, kill 36

Turkish warplanes struck pro-Syrian government forces in the northwestern Afrin region of Syria yesterday, killing at least 36 of them, as Turkey's assault in the Kurdish region gathered pace, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

Meanwhile, the top UN human rights official on Friday said Syrian government air strikes on the besieged Syrian enclave of eastern Ghouta and shelling from the rebel-held zone into Damascus probably constitute war crimes and must be prosecuted.

The pro-Syrian government forces entered Afrin last week in support of the Kurdish YPG militia, the stated target of the operation launched by Turkey and allied Syrian rebel fighters in January.

The Observatory said the air strike, which hit a camp in Kafr Jina, marked the third time in 48 hours that Turkish warplanes had struck pro-government forces in Afrin.

Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said his country's forces had captured the town of Rajo from militants. The Observatory said the Turkish army was in control of about 70 percent of the town, about 25 km (16 miles) northwest of Afrin city.

In another development, Zeid Ra'ad al-Hussein, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, said the perpetrators of such crimes in Eastern Ghouta should know they were being identified and that dossiers were being built for future prosecutions.

In one of the deadliest offensives of Syria's war, government air strikes and bombardment have killed hundreds of people over 12 days in eastern Ghouta, an area of besieged towns and farms in the last major rebel-held region near the capital.

The UN Security Council called on Feb. 24 for a 30-day ceasefire in eastern Ghouta, where 400,000 people live.

"Despite this rare example of unanimity, civilians in Eastern Ghouta have reported that air strikes and shelling continue," Zeid told the Geneva rights forum during an urgent debate held at Britain's request.

Zeid repeated his call for the situation in Syria to be referred to the International Criminal Court, adding: "Attempts to thwart justice and shield these criminals are disgraceful."

Syria's ally Russia has blocked previous efforts in the U.N. Security Council to refer the situation to the Hague-based ICC.