Syrian Coalition Condemns Russia's Ongoing Crimes in Syria and Warns of Further Escalation

Press release

Syrian Coalition

Media Department

February 01, 2018

The Russian occupation and regime forces continue to commit more crimes in Syria. Tuesday (January 30) and the days before it witnessed terrible crimes in rural Idlib, Rural Damascus and other areas in Syria.

In addition to the continued killing and escalation, the bombing campaign is also causing massive destruction, chaos, and forced displacement of civilians. These atrocious crimes have time and again demonstrated that the Assad regime and its Russian and Iranian allies know only how to kill and commit crimes and that every initiative on the political level is nothing but a media hype aimed at gaining more time.

The Syrian Coalition warns of further escalation and crimes by Russia in the coming days in retaliation for the failure of the project that Russia was trying to impose on the Syrian people through the Sochi conference.

It is imperative, therefore, that the UN Security Council condemn these massacres, hold the perpetrators accountable by all possible means, work for the protection of Syrian civilians, and find a just solution that achieves their aspirations in line with the resolutions it passed on Syria.

The majority of crimes committed in the past few days affected civilian areas in rural Idlib. Airstrikes on Monday resulted in the deaths of 15 civilians in a vegetables market in the town of Ariha and injured dozens more, all of whom were displaced civilians. Violent airstrikes also targeted the town of Sarqib on Tuesday, killing at least 16 civilians and wounding dozens more.

These atrocious crimes have exposed the real Russian position and demonstrated that Russia is determined to continue to support the Assad regime and its allied militias by all means possible through a twisted understanding of the political solution and all other understandings concerning the ‘de-escalation zones’ agreement as well as the declarations of truces and cessation of bombings.

The occupiers will not escape their responsibilities for the war crimes they are committing in Syria. Perpetrators of these crimes against the Syrian people will be prosecuted and held accountable in all possible means.