MOSCOW, Sept 20 (Reuters) - The Kremlin said on Tuesday that Russia's military was checking media reports of air strikes on a humanitarian aid convoy near Aleppo in Syria the previous day and was expected to say something about the matter later in the day. At the same time the attack took place on Uram al-Kubra, presumed Syrian or Russian jets launched a wave of attacks in and around the nearby city of Aleppo, minutes after Syria's military announced a week-long ceasefire had expired. Both Syrian and Russian aircraft operate over the province, while the U.S.-led coalition targets the Islamic State group in other parts of the country. Witnesses described Monday's attack on a Syrian Arab Red Crescent warehouse and convoy in the rebel-held town of Uram al-Kubra in Aleppo province as prolonged and intense, saying the aerial bombardment continued as rescue workers rushed to pull the wounded from the flaming wreckage and rubble. Abdurrahman said the convoy of about 30 trucks had crossed earlier from a government-controlled area and were hit from the air hours after they reached the Red Crescent warehouse. The Syrian Red Crescent said the head of one of its local offices and "around 20 civilians" were killed in Monday's strike, which the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights blamed on Russian or Syrian aircraft.
The Obama administration claims that Russia was responsible for the bombing of a United Nations aid convoy near Aleppo on September 19. Russia denies its involvement. In the aftermath of the attack, the United Nations suspends all aid convoys in Syria.