At least 42 people have been killed in suspected Russian air strikes in Syria's Raqqa province, activists and a monitoring group say.

"The areas targeted by the Russian air strikes on Saturday were mostly residential areas and not for ISIL," Ghareb al-Omawi, a media activist from the Sound and Picture group, told Al Jazeera on Sunday.

"Two hospitals were also hit in the air strikes in addition to public places. Several people were also injured and have been taken to hospitals in the suburbs."

Sound and Picture comprises activists who document and report on the situation in Raqqa and Deir Az Zor, they also provide images and infographics on the humanitarian situation on the ground.

The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights put the death toll at 40, adding that eight of those killed were children.

Restaurants and shops were targeted in the air strikes, the monitor said.

PHOTO CAPTION

Map of Syria locating Raqqa

Al-Jazeera