French president demands Russia stop raids backing Syrian gov't despite Moscow's clarification

French President Francois Hollande on Thursday called on Russia to stop raids supporting forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

"I demand Russia stop it because we have now thousands of people who were displaced under bombardment," Hollande said in an interview with France 2 and TF1, warning of "serious risks."

He also reiterated his call for al-Assad's departure as well as the need to push forward intra-Syrian negotiations, which "for a time" should include figures from the Syrian government until election.

Moscow has repeatedly rejected claims that its airstrikes in Syria have worsened the casualties and displacement of civilians, stressing that its campaign is aimed at helping the country fight against terrorism.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova pointed out Wednesday that people are fleeing Syria because of Islamic State (IS) terrorists, not from Russian military operations.

Russia's air raids "are exclusively directed to the fight against the IS," Zakharova was quoted as saying during her weekly briefing. "We understand quite well that people fleeing Syria over the last few years are doing this out of desperation, and of course doing this not because of Russian bombing." Endi