TOPSHOT - A picture taken on December 23, 2019 shows a deserted street in Maaret al-Numan in Syria's southern Idlib governorate. - Regime forces have seized dozens of towns and villages in northwest Syria from jihadists following days of violent clashes, fuelling an exodus of civilians, the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. Heightened regime and Russian bombardment on the Maaret al-Numan region since December 16 has forced tens of thousands of vulnerable people to flee their homes, according to the United Nations. (Photo by Omar HAJ KADOUR / AFP)