MIDEAST-CRISIS/SYRIA-ATTACK UN Civilian death toll in Syrian air strike on market nears 111, the UN says

Record ID: 143578

  • Title: MIDEAST-CRISIS/SYRIA-ATTACK UN Civilian death toll in Syrian air strike on market nears 111, the UN says
  • Date: 18th August 2015
  • Summary: GENEVA, SWITZERLAND (AUGUST 18, 2015) (REUTERS) VARIOUS EXTERIORS OF UNITED NATIONS HEADQUARTERS VARIOUS OF NEWS BRIEFING ONGOING (SOUNDBITE) (English) UNITED NATIONS HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR HUMAN RIGHTS SPOKESPERSON, RUPERT COLVILLE, SAYING: "The outrageous bombing of a busy local marketplace in the centre of Douma, in the Eastern Ghouta area of rural Damascus has deepened
  • Embargoed: 2nd September 2015 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Switzerland
  • Country: Switzerland
  • Topics: General
  • Reuters ID: LVA5VLVVMH2AFF0EUYIYCO7OPRRI
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: The civilian death toll from a Syrian government air strike on a market in Douma northeast of Damascus is reported to be 111, with at least 200 injured, the United Nations (U.N.) said on Tuesday (August 18).
    A Syrian military source said the air force launched strikes on Sunday on the rebel-held town of Douma and the nearby area of Harasta against an insurgent group, Islam Army, following recent attacks on government-held Damascus.
    The Syrian political opposition group, the National Coalition for Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces, said the attack on Douma aimed to inflict as many civilian casualties as possible.
    "The outrageous bombing of a busy local marketplace in the centre of Douma, in the Eastern Ghouta area of rural Damascus has deepened the intense suffering of the civilian population in the area, which has been under siege by Government forces since 2013," Rupert Colville, spokesman for the U.N. human rights agency told a news conference in Geneva.
    "At least 111 civilians have reportedly been killed and at least 200 others were injured, many of whom are in a serious condition. The death toll is likely to rise, particularly since those injured are being treated in field hospitals which are sorely inadequate, given that the two-year siege of Douma has led to a serious shortage of medical supplies," he added.
    An estimated quarter of a million people have been killed in the Syrian civil war that has splintered the country, driven 10 million people from their homes, and drawn in regional states that support the warring sides.
    The war in and around Damascus - President Bashar al-Assad's seat of power - has escalated in recent days.
    Islam Army, one of the most powerful rebel groups in the eastern Damascus region, launched an attack on government positions in Harasta on Saturday.
    Last Wednesday, a barrage of insurgent rockets killed 13 people in Damascus, while government air strikes in the nearby Eastern Ghouta region killed 31 people, the Observatory reported.
    The Syrian military source said Sunday's air strikes were a response to the insurgent attacks on Damascus.
    Denying targeting of civilians, the source said rebel groups had sought to position their headquarters in residential areas.
    The U.N. said attacks on civilians were unlawful and unacceptable.
    "Any intentional direct attack against civilians or civilian objects as well as the use of indiscriminate weapons in densely populated areas are serious violations of international humanitarian law and international human rights law and may amount to a war crime for which individuals can be held criminally responsible," Colville said.
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