120 Civilians Killed in Russian Sarin Attack in Eastern Rural Hama & Raqqa

Press Statement Original in arabic

Syrian Coalition

Media Office

December 13, 2016

Rights groups and activists said that at least 105 civilians were killed and 300 others injured with some suffering breathing problems as a result of intense airstrikes and attacks by sarin nerve agent by the Assad regime and Russian air forces on several villages in eastern rural Hama on Monday . Over 15 more civilians were also killed in airstrikes using missiles filled with sarin nerve agent on the city of Raqqa on Monday.

The Syrian Coalition strongly condemns these crimes as it calls for an urgent international investigation into these attacks by banned weapons on civilian areas. Such attacks clearly amount to war crimes and represent a blatant violation of international law as well as of UN Security Council resolutions, especially resolution 2118. All those responsible for these crimes must face accountability for their actions.

The latest massacres in eastern Hama and Raqqa are strikingly reminiscent of the Ghouta Massacre whose perpetrators have not yet faced punishment for gassing hundreds of civilians in the Damascus suburb in 2013. The fact that these heinous crimes continue to go unpunished encourages the Assad regime to commit dozens of similar crimes and massacres. The inaction of the international community risks opening the door wide for more crimes in Syria and elsewhere as long as international community's institutions are powerless and disabled.

The Syrian Coalition denounces the shameful international inaction which has paved the way for this level of blatant criminality by the Assad regime and its allies. Photos of hundreds of civilians, including women and children who have been killed or injured by chemical weapons, are being widely circulated on media outlets. However, the international community and international bodies continue to fail to take action to put an end to the ongoing crimes against civilians in Syria.

May our wounded recover, our detainees be free, and our fallen heroes rest in peace.

Long live Syria and its people, free and with honor