Guided Missiles by Regime Forces Kill a Civilian in the Idlib Countryside
From the beginning of the current year 2023 until October 29, White Helmets teams responded to 12 attacks with guided missiles by regime forces. These attacks killed two civilians, including a White Helmets volunteer, and injured 9 civilians, including a child.
Yesterday, Monday, October 30, a nurse was killed and a doctor and a driver sustained severe burns and injuries after regime forces targeted the civilian vehicle with two guided missiles Binnish-Taftanaz road, east of Idlib. All of them were members of the medical team at Binnish City Hospital.
Syrian regime forces and Russia have significantly intensified their attacks on civilians in northwest Syria during this month of October, utilizing rocket, artillery, and aerial bombardments, along with cluster and incendiary missiles. This escalation raises concerns about an impending unprecedented humanitarian disaster, as civilians are compelled to flee their homes and farmers are unable to continue their work.
Yesterday, Russian warplanes also targeted the outskirts of the villages of Kansafra and Kafardin in the Idlib countryside. Intensive artillery shelling by regime forces also targeted the outskirts of the village of Kansafra in the southern Idlib countryside. Our teams did not receive any reports of casualties.
On Thursday, October 19, regime forces targeted a civilian car parked on the side of a road east of the town of Taftanaz in the eastern countryside of Idlib with a guided missile. The attack resulted in the car being destroyed and catching fire, but no casualties were reported.
On Wednesday, August 9th, Regime forces used a guided missile to target an agricultural tractor pulling a water tanker parked beside a house in the village of Sheikh Hassan on the Badama Al-Barnas road in western Idlib countryside. This resulted in material damage to the tanker and the house, with no reported injuries.
On Sunday, August 6th, a boy who was herding livestock was injured after regime forces used a guided missile to target a parked car next to a residential house in the village of Kmaeia, western Idlib. On the same day, regime forces carried out a similar attack with a guided missile, targeting a motorcycle on the road near the village of Al-Kanda, close to Najiyeh in the same countryside, without causing any injuries.
On Tuesday, July 11, White Helmets volunteer Abdul Basit Ahmad Abdul Khaleq killed in a double-tap strike by regime forces with a guided missile that targeted the rescue vehicle while the team was working to inspect areas affected by artillery shelling by regime forces on the outskirts of the city of Atareb, west of Aleppo.
From the beginning of the current year 2023 until October 29, White Helmets teams responded to 12 attacks with guided missiles by regime forces. These attacks killed two civilians, including a White Helmets volunteer, and injured 9 civilians, including a child.
In 2022, our teams responded to 27 attacks with guided missiles by regime forces using guided missiles in northwest Syria. These attacks resulted in the loss of 10 civilians, including a child and a woman, and left 36 others injured, including 11 children and 3 women.
In 2021, the frequency of these targeted attacks was even higher, with a total of 34 guided missile strikes. These attacks claimed the lives of 30 civilians, including 4 children and 3 women, and left 35 others injured, including 7 children.
Northernwestern Syria is facing a dire situation amidst the deliberate targeting of civilians and civilian infrastructure by the regime forces and Russia. These systematic attacks aim to instill fear, displace civilians, and prevent them from staying in their homes. It also hampers their ability to work in farms and harvest crops, particularly during the olive harvesting season, and disrupts the educational process. The attacks threaten civilian lives and stability amidst a 12-year-long crisis.