The Syrian Civil Defense Corps said that no fewer than 177 people were killed and 811 others wounded in attacks launched by Assad forces and the Iranian-backed militias with Russian air support on the Damascus suburb of eastern Ghouta in the past 16 days.
In a statement issued on Sunday, the Civil Defense, also known as the White Helmets, said that children and women accounted for the majority of the victims. It noted that the victims included 51 children and 34 women, while the injured included 208 children and 192 women.
“The Assad regime and Russian war machines continued their military campaign on eastern Ghouta for the 16th consecutive day; targeting towns and villages of eastern Ghouta with 695 airstrikes, 645 surface-to-surface missiles, and more than 3,031 artillery shells,” the statement said.
The statement added that the ongoing onslaught by regime forces on eastern Ghouta violated all agreements and conventions demanding the sparing of civilians during military conflicts.
Regime forces fired surface-to-surface missiles loaded with poison gas on the area separating Harasta from Douma district, resulting in the dispersion of toxic gas in several neighborhoods of Douma. The attack left five women and a child with breathing difficulties, which required rushing them to medical centers in the district.
The Civil Defense went on to say that its volunteers rescued 79 civilians, including 23 children and 31 women who were trapped in the rubble of bombed buildings.
The Civil Defense urged the international community to take urgent action to protect civilians and stop violent attacks on besieged eastern Ghouta.
The statement called on local and international civil institutions to intervene urgently to save eastern Ghouta through the exertion of pressure on the active actors to stop military attacks on civilians, allow the delivery of humanitarian aid, and allow medical evacuations. (Source: Syrian Coalition’s Media Department + Agencies)
