Syrian Coalition Condemns Aljeena Massacre & Calls for Accountability

Press Release

Media Department

Syrian Coalition

March 18, 2017

At least 75 people were killed and around 100 more were wounded in airstrikes launched by the international anti-ISIS coalition on the village of Aljeena in western rural Aleppo on Thursday.

The Syrian Coalition condemns the attack which targeted people inside a mosque during prayers time. Perpetrators of the attack must be held accountable as available evidence suggests that the attack was not due to negligence, but was carried out with a view to killing the people gathered inside. The Coalition calls for an immediate Investigation into this reprehensible crime.

The crime has again showed the shortcomings in the strategy of the international anti-ISIS coalition in Syria. It has also given a serious cause for concern about the role of the United States in Syria which risks following in the footsteps of Russia in propping up the Assad regime and avoiding the targeting of the real source of terrorism.

The world must be fully aware that counter-terrorism strategies ignoring the Assad regime and its allied foreign militias will only serve to further fuel terrorism and provide terror groups with a much-needed recruiting tool. Unless a decisive action is taken to address the root cause of terrorism, namely the Assad regime, terrorism will continue to spread in the region and beyond.