More than 300,000 civilians killed in Syrian conflict – UN

Residents walk through the destruction of the once rebel-held Salaheddine neighbourhood in the eastern Aleppo, Syria (AP)

The first 10 years of Syria’s conflict killed more than 300,000 civilians, the United Nations said – the highest official estimate to date of conflict-related civilian deaths in the country.

The conflict began with anti-government protests that broke out in March 2011 in different parts of Syria, demanding democratic reforms following Arab Spring protests in Egypt, Tunisia, Yemen, Libya and Bahrain that removed some Arab leaders who had been in power for decades.