GENEVA, May 26 (Xinhua) -- The UN human rights chief has urged "all states" to take greater care when carrying out airstrikes against the Islamic State (IS) in Syria, after scores of civilians were reportedly killed by a series of deadly bombings in the war-torn country.
"The same civilians who are suffering indiscriminate shelling and summary executions by ISIL, are also falling victim to the escalating airstrikes, particularly in the northeastern governorates of Al-Raqqa and Deir-ez-Zor," Zeid al Hussein warned in a statement.
"Unfortunately, scant attention is being paid by the outside world to the appalling predicament of the civilians trapped in these areas," he added.
The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) indicated that it has received credible reports of civilians losing their lives as a result of airstrikes against IS combatants.
This includes an attack which took place on May 14 in Al-Akershi, a village in the eastern Al-Raqqa governorate.
According to sources, 23 farmworkers, of which 17 were women, died in the incident. A similar airstrike killed at least 59 civilians in the IS-controlled city of Albo Kamal in eastern Deir-ez-Zor governorate the following day.
"Because of the ISIL presence, we fear civilians are in an increasingly dangerous situation as the airstrikes and ground conflict intensify, possibly resulting in many more casualties, as well as retaliatory assaults by ISIL against densely-populated civilian areas," Zeid explained.
"The rising toll of civilian deaths and injuries already caused by airstrikes in Deir-ez-Zor and Al-Raqqa suggests that insufficient precautions may have been taken in the attacks," he added.
As multiple air forces, including the Syrian military and other countries' military, are conducting strikes in Syria, it's very difficult to attribute responsibility to a specific air force.
