As many as 32 civilians, including six children and 11 women, were killed in suspected Russian airstrikes in three North Syrian regions, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said on Friday. Dozens of people were wounded in the operations, it added.

According to the head of the observatory, Rami Abdel Rahman, warplanes bombarded the Islamic State’s de facto Syrian capital Raqa and the towns of Azaz and Al-Bab in the Aleppo province on Thursday, AFP reported. So far, there have been no reports of militant casualties in the airstrikes.

The observatory can differentiate the strikes carried out by Russian, Syrian and US-led coalition aircraft based on their flight patterns. It identifies those killed through its network of activists, medical workers and fighters.

For nearly three months, Russia has been carrying out air raids on armed opposition groups throughout Syria. However, its operations have been criticised as they have resulted in significant civilian casualties. Since the conflict began in 2011, more than 250,000 people have been killed in Syria.