On Crime of Targeting Local Council HQ in Town of Shifoniyah & Death of its Head & Other Civilians

Press release

Syrian Coalition

Media Department

February 28, 2018

Jets of the Assad regime and Russian occupation bombed the office of the local council in the town of Shifoniyah in the Damascus suburb of eastern Ghouta on Sunday (Feb 25), causing a massacre claiming the lives of head of the council Mohammed Jamous along with two council members and a number of civilians and displaced persons. Rescue workers are still trying to dig up the bodies from the rubble.

The targeting of the council’s office constitutes a war crime and a violation of the UN Security Council resolution 2401 calling for a ceasefire in Syria as well as a violation of International Law and International Humanitarian Law. Cluster and incendiary munitions were used in the attack targeting residential neighborhoods as well as civilian and medical facilities less than 24 hours following the adoption of resolution 2401.

The Coalition extends its heartfelt condolences to the families of the victims as it reiterates its condemnation of all crimes against the Syrian people. The ongoing brutal onslaught on towns and villages of eastern Ghouta constitutes a genocide and a crime against humanity taking place right under the watchful eyes of the international community which bears primary responsibility for these crimes as it has so far failed to punish the perpetrators. This failure has encouraged the Assad regime, Russia, and Iran to commit more crimes.

The Coalition calls on the international community to shoulder its responsibilities towards Syrian civilians as it calls on the United Nations and the UN Security Council to overcome Russia’s continued disabling of the Council. It also calls for urgent measures and the exertion of real pressure to stop the ongoing genocide in Ghouta.