"We have got acquainted with the report and again nothing specific or new has been published. The same stock phrases and fakes, which we have numerously denounced before. Such expressions are used throughout the report as 'suspected Russian air attacks, 'may have violated international law,' and so on. Therefore, these are all-out assumptions without any evidence," the spokesman said on Wednesday, TASS reported.
Amnesty International claims there were no military objectives or militants in the areas of "suspected Russian attacks," Konashenkov said.
"But they can't know this and are unable to verify it. It is known that jihadists in Syria are operating as highly mobile units, which are using the notorious Toyota pickups with large-caliber armaments mounted on them," the Russian Defense Ministry spokesman said.
Each such vehicle is a tactical unit and considered a legitimate military target in accordance with the U.S. Army classification, Konashenkov said.
"Incidentally, some of these vehicles have got into Syria from the U.S. territory, which has already been proved," the Russian Defense Ministry spokesman said.
As UNIAN reported earlier, Amnesty International in a new briefing published on Wednesday says that Russian air strikes in Syria have killed hundreds of civilians and caused massive destruction in residential areas, in a pattern of attacks that show evidence of violations of international humanitarian law.
The report titled "Syria: 'Civilian Objects Were not Damaged': Russia's Statements on its Attacks in Syria Unmasked" highlights the high price civilians have paid for suspected Russian attacks across the country. The report focuses on six attacks in Homs, Idleb and Aleppo between September and November 2015 which killed at least 200 civilians and around a dozen fighters.
The briefing includes evidence suggesting that Russian authorities may have lied to cover up civilian damage to a mosque from one air strike and a field hospital in another. It also documents evidence suggesting Russia's use of internationally banned cluster munitions and of unguided bombs in populated residential areas.
