Market Blast in north syria Kills 15 people
An opposition war monitor and a paramedic group said that a rocket attack on a busy market in a town held by opposition militants supported by Turkey on Friday left dozens injured.
Days prior to the battle on the town of al-Bab, at least 11 Syrian soldiers and US-backed Kurdish militants were killed by a Turkish airstrike
The bombardment on Friday was attributed to Syrian government forces by the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an opposition war monitor, who claimed it was in retribution for the Turkish airstrike.
According to the Observatory, the incident left more than 30 people injured and 15 people dead, including three children. White Helmets, the Syrian Civil Defence organisation of the opposition, reported the same number of fatalities but 28 injuries. The paramedic group claimed that some of the injured and the dead bodies were evacuated by its members.
According to the head of the Observatory, Rami Abdurrahman, “this is the worst massacres carried out by regime forces since the battles stopped between the regime and the opposition.” He was referring to a cease-fire in March 2020 that put an end to a massive Syrian government offensive against rebel-held areas.
According to a statement, the Syrian Democratic Forces, which are led by Kurds and are supported by the US, did not bombard al-Bab. The administration didn’t offer any commentary.
Since 2016, Turkey has carried out three significant cross-border operations into Syria and has taken control of several areas in the north.
The last significant opposition stronghold in Syria is located in northern Syria, where shelling and airstrikes are frequent despite the recent decline in fighting. The violence in Syria, which started in March 2011, has claimed hundreds of thousands of lives and uprooted half of the 23 million people who lived there before the conflict. With the aid of its allies, Russia and Iran, President Bashar Assad’s forces have reclaimed control of the majority of Syria over the previous few years.