Dozens of international aid groups also warned Friday that humanitarian conditions in Syria"s northwest have reached a new “crisis point” The EU is prolonging sanctions against the Syrian regime for a year due to its continued crackdown against civilians in the country UNITED NATIONS: Britain on Friday challenged Russia and Syria to provide assurances to the UN Security Council that attacks on hospitals and schools in northwest Syria will stop. The council was meeting in an emergency session to discuss the surge of fighting in the Idlib region that has raised alarm of an imminent all-out assault which could lead to a humanitarian catastrophe. At least 18 hospitals and clinics have been destroyed or damaged by air strikes and shelling over recent weeks, several of which were on UN "no target" lists that detail exact locations of the health facilities to the warring sides, the UN aid chief told the council. "Russia and Syria are the only countries that fly planes in the area," British Ambassador Karen Pierce told the council. "I think we need answers today." "If the answer is the Russian and Syrian air forces, I call on both ambassadors here today to give us the assurance that the attacks will stop." Russia rejected accusations that hospitals and other civilian infrastructure were being targeted and stressed that military operations were aimed at wiping out terrorists. "We categorically reject accusations of violations of international humanitarian law," Russian Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia told the council. More than 180,000 people have been displaced by the latest violence in three weeks, UN aid chief Mark Lowcock said, and up to 160 people have been killed. Dozens of international aid groups also warned Friday that humanitarian conditions in Syria"s northwest have reached a new “crisis point.” The violence has effectively shattered a cease-fire negotiated by Russia and Turkey, in place since September. Russia has firmly backed President Bashar Assad"s government in the eight-year civil war, while Turkey has supported rebel factions. In their appeal issued Friday, some 70 aid groups called for an immediate end to the fighting. They said that the violence has displaced an estimated 180,000 people in the last two weeks alone. The rebel enclave, which stretches between northern Hama and most of Idlib provinces, is home to 3 million people. The violence has forced at least 16 humanitarian organizations to suspend their operations in the region, the groups added. The staff were either displaced themselves or the facilities came under attack. Physicians for Human Rights said it has verified that over the last four weeks Syrian government forces and their Russian allies have carried out nine attacks on hospitals and medical facilities. The aid groups said that at least 15 health facilities and 16 schools were reported to have been significantly damaged or destroyed. At least two health workers were killed. The groups said at least four clearly identified humanitarian posts were targeted, condemning the "failure" to observe international law. Meanwhile, the European Union is prolonging sanctions against the Syrian regime of President Bashar Assad for a year due to its continued crackdown against civilians in the war-ravaged country. EU headquarters said Friday that the 28-nation bloc "decided to maintain its restrictive measures against the Syrian regime and its supporters as the repression of civilian population continues." It means that 270 people and 70 entities like companies or organizations will have travel bans and asset freezes against them extended until June 1, 2020. The sanctions are due to alleged violence against civilians, benefiting from or supporting the regime, or being associated with people who do. The EU has also imposed an oil embargo on Syria and bans equipment that could be used in a crackdown on Syrian civilians. The war in Syria, now in its ninth year, has killed more than 370,000 people and displaced millions since it started with the brutal repression of anti-government protests.