The European Union has condemned the bombardment on IDP Kammouna camp in northern Syria on Thursday and described the attack as unacceptable and a grave violation of international humanitarian law.
“The reports of many casualties following an attack on a refugee camp in northern Syria today shows that the most vulnerable people continue to be the first victims of the conflict,” said EU High Representative Federica Mogherini and EU Commissioner for humanitarian aid and crisis management Christos Stylianides in a joint statement on Thursday.
“Refugee camps should be a place where those most in need can find sanctuary from conflict, not targets of violence,” the statement said. “Attacks of this kind highlight the urgent need for a negotiated end to the civil war. It is time for the international community to act collectively and forcefully to put the process back on track,” the statement added.
The UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Friday said he was “outraged” by Thursday’s attack on the Kammouna IDP camp. He reiterated calls on the UN Security Council “to send a strong message to all warring parties that there will be serious consequences for grave violations of international humanitarian and human rights law.”
“Those responsible for yesterday’s seemingly calculated attack against civilians in the camp in Idlib, which could constitute a war crime, must be held accountable,” Ki-moon said. He once again urged the Security Council to refer the situation in Syria to the International Criminal Court.
Member of the Syrian Coalition Ahmed Ramadan said that the massacre perpetrated by the Assad regime against civilians in the Kammouna IDP camp in rural Idlib could have been prevented had US President Barack Obama approved the establishment of a safe zone in northern Syria.
The airstrikes on the camp killed at least 30 people and wounded dozens. Activists published images showing the aftermath of the airstrikes with tents smouldering, fires spreading in the camp, and charred body parts strewn all around the area.
Ramadan said that the women and children killed by the butcher Bashar al-Assad in the Kammouna IDP camp in rural Idlib were supposed to have found refuge in a safe zone which President Barack Obama refused to endorse.
The Syrian Coalition condemned the attack, emphasizing that “the bombing of the Kammouna camp, which took place shortly after the UN Security Council had condemned the Assad regime’s ongoing massacres in Aleppo, represents a blatant violation of all international conventions and UN resolutions.”
“Such a cowardly act clearly demonstrates that there cannot be any talk about a political process whilst the Assad regime and its allies carry on with their crimes against the Syrian people. It also provides further proof that the Assad regime is not a serious partner in the political process, but rather a criminal clique pursuing a policy of state terrorism,” the Coalition added. (Source: Syrian Coalition + Agencies)
