Sunday, the International Rescue Committee expressed its "strong condemnation" of the bombing of the city of Afrin in northern Syria, which led to the killing of civilians and members of medical staff, and to the hospital being out of service.

Saturday, artillery shelling hit a hospital in the city of Afrin, which is under the control of pro-Ankara factions, killing at least 21 people, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

"We strongly condemn this deadly attack on Shifa Hospital, one of the largest medical facilities in northern Syria," said Wolfgang Griesmann, director of the International Rescue Committee's Syria department.

"This is the eleventh attack recorded since the beginning of the year on health care centers, which brings the total number of attacks documented since January 2019 to 124," he added in an official statement.

According to the observatory, among the dead were 17 civilians, including a doctor, three hospital employees, two women and two children.

The committee confirmed that the attack completely destroyed the emergency and maternity rooms, and the hospital was "now out of service."

In its statement, the organization stressed the need for "these attacks to stop."

Saturday, the observatory stated that the bombing came from areas in the north of Aleppo province, "in which militias loyal to Iran and the regime forces are deployed, and Kurdish forces are near them."

In a statement, the Syrian Democratic Forces denied any involvement in the bombing, while no party has claimed responsibility for the attack so far.

Turkish forces and their allies from the opposition factions took control of the Kurdish region of Afrin, located in Aleppo Governorate, in March 2018.

Similar to the areas controlled by factions loyal to Ankara, the area regularly witnesses assassinations, attacks and explosions.

On Thursday, at least 12 people were killed in northwest Syria, including fighters, in the bombing of the Syrian regime targeting the Idlib region, according to the observatory.

The ongoing conflict in Syria since 2011 has resulted in about half a million deaths, according to the Syrian Observatory, and has led to the displacement and displacement of millions.