The UN on Tuesday strongly denounced a deadly terror attack in the Manbij district of Syria's Aleppo province.
"We condemned the horrendous attack that claimed the lives of 20 people, mostly women, in the city of Manbij, that took place yesterday," spokesman Stephane Dujarric said during a news conference.
Noting that the incident claimed the lives of mostly women and children, Dujarric said: "We reiterate that all parties must uphold their obligations under international humanitarian law to protect civilians."
"Civilians and civilian infrastructure should never be targeted on the humanitarian front. We and our partners continue to provide assistance to scale up our assessment and monitoring mission where security conditions permit," he said.
Dujarric reported that the motive and the perpetrators of the attack are "not clear."
According to initial reports, a bomb-laden vehicle exploded Monday at the southern entrance of Manbij, which is under the control of the Syrian National Army (SNA).
No group has immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, but local security forces said it might have been carried out by the PKK/YPG terror organization.
In its 40-year terror campaign against Türkiye, the PKK -- listed as a terrorist organization by Türkiye, the US, and the EU -- has been responsible for the deaths of over 40,000 people, including women, children, infants and the elderly. The YPG is its Syrian offshoot.
Since the fall of the Assad regime in Syria, the terror group has attempted to exploit regional instability to create a "terror corridor" along the border with Türkiye.
