Syrian activists and rescue workers say that at least 17 people, including women and children, have been killed in airstrikes on a rebel-held village in northwestern Idlib province.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said on Wednesday that the overnight strikes hit a village in southern Idlib. The Observatory says at least four children and two women were among those killed.

The province is a rebel and insurgent stronghold where President Bashar Assad's forces have recently launched an offensive to try and retake Idlib after losing it nearly three years ago.

The Syrian Civil Defense, the team of first responders also known as the White Helmet, says the highly explosive airstrikes launched late Tuesday destroyed an entire bloc. The group put the death toll at 19.