As of June 15, 2018, the Syrian regular forces and their allies continued their fiercest military campaign against cities and towns in the countryside of armed opposition-held Daraa. June 27, 2018 saw a large number of civilian deaths and wounds in the eastern and western countryside of Daraa following heavy aerial bombardment on these areas by warplanes and helicopters of the Syrian regular forces supported by the Russian Air Force.
According to STJ’s field researcher, the severe aerial bombardment on al-Taebah town on that day caused a massacre in which seven civilians had been killed, including three children from the same family. Besides, bombarding Dael town on the same day killed six civilians, mostly women and children. He added that number of the civilian casualties has exceeded 40 civilians throughout the eastern and western countryside of Daraa following the shelling and the government airstrikes specifically on June 27, 2018, whereas number of the wounded has exceeded 100, since warplanes affiliated to the regular forces had focused its attacks on areas in the eastern and western countryside of Daraa such as Seida, Meseifra, al-Jiza, Kiheel, Rakham, Umm al-Mayathen, Tafas, Ibtaa and Dael. It is worth mentioning that these areas contain thousands of internally displaced people, especially those who have fled their areas controlled recently by the regular forces. The field researcher pointed out that the number of airstrikes on June 27, 2018 alone were more than 270 raids, plus 80 barrel bombs that had been dropped by helicopters, as well as hundreds of artillery shells and rocket launchers.
A day earlier, i.e. June 26, 2018, the Syrian regular forces and their allies could control parts of Busr al-Harir city and the town of Melihit al-Atash, in conjunction with civilians being killed and injured following the rigorous shelling on Daraa countryside. STJ prepared a report concerning the incident and had already published another report on the announcement of towns in eastern Daraa as “stricken areas” due to exposure to violent attacks, besides that it had prepared a report on the violent bombardment on the eastern and western countryside of Daraa, which had caused civilian casualties from June 15, 2018 to June 20, 2018.
the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) had earlier expressed deep concern about recent reports of civilian deaths and injuries, including children, in Daraa province since the beginning of the offensive launched by the government forces to restore opposition-controlled areas southwest Syria. An estimated 750, 000 lives “are in danger” because of air and ground-based strikes.
Image of a child victims of the airstrikes on al-Taebah town on June 27, 2018.
Photo credit: Activists from al-Taebah.
Hasan al-Meqdad, one of the activists from the eastern countryside of Daraa, told STJ that the Syrian regular forces and their allies have recently ramped up the aerial bombardment on all armed opposition held-areas in Daraa province and managed to control several towns on June 27, 2018 but after almost-complete destruction of these areas such as (Mlaiha al-Sharqiah and Nahta). He added in this regard:
“Shelling towns and cities of Seida, Meseifra and al-Jiza caused several field hospitals to be out of service, since they were targeted by Syrian/Russian warplanes. The Civil Defense Centre in Meseifra also went out of service after exposure to airstrikes. the number of displaced people who came from the eastern countryside of Daraa amounted to more than 150, 000 civilians who all headed to the border villages with Jordan, but the Syrian regime shelling began to access to these villages as well, forcing civilians to scatter in the plains close to the border with Jordan, which in turn blocked the Syrians fleeing the bombardment from entering its territory. Furthermore, the regime forces had prevented civilians from entering al-Sweida province or Damascus. It is worth mentioning that the latter is currently advancing towards the cities of al-Harak and Busr al-sham located near the Jordanian border, thus warns against a major humanitarian catastrophe.”
Image shows unidentified children victims who have been killed in the brutal aerial bombardment on al-Ghariyah al-Sharqiya town on June 27, 2018.
Photo credit: Activists from the city.
Furthermore, on June 27, 2018 the Syrian government forces announced the opening of three safe corridors through which the civilians proceed from Daraa countryside, the first corridor (al-Ghariyah West Road- Kherbet Ghazaleh), the second corridor (Tafas road- Dael- the International Highway), and the third corridor (Kafr Shams road- Deir al-Bukht), plus the preparation of a temporary accommodation centre near Jbab town located in the northern countryside of Daraa, and called the civilians fleeing the Syrian opposition-held areas to go there.
Alternatively, the field researcher of STJ pointed out that up to 700 families from Daraa countryside had arrived to the accommodation centre near Jbab, and no further details of their current situation were received because of the heavy security intensification in the area.
Image shows a part of the civilian gatherings in Dael town crossing located in Daraa countryside in order to proceed to the makeshift accommodation centers established by the Syrian regular forces on June 27, 2018.
Photo credit: Activists from Daraa.