Human rights activists called for bringing the Assad regime and its symbols to justice as they marked the seventh anniversary of the Massacre of Badmaya Valley. The massacre claimed the lives of dozens of people and is considered as one of the most horrific war crimes in Syria.
On December 20, 2011, Assad forces encircled dozens of army deserters and peaceful activists in an area locally known as Badmaya Valley near the town of Kafar Aweed in Idlib province and began violent shelling on the area, killing all those who were trapped in the valley.
A rights activist said that the massacre “left extreme pain in the hearts of the people of Idlib, especially in Jabal al-Zawiyya area. The incident also had major impact on the struggle against the Assad forces in the province as it prompted rebel fighters to drive regime forces out of the province and free the region from the regime’s tyranny and oppression.
Dozens of people demonstrated in the town of Kafar Aweed in rural Idlib on Friday to commemorate the massacre and the Assad regime’s crimes against the Syrian people. Activists said that observing the anniversary of the massacres is important to expose the Assad regime’s atrocious crimes which are to blame for the tragedy unfolding in Syria. They expressed outright rejection of attempts to rehabilitate the regime and called for holding it to account.
The demonstrators raised the flag of the Syrian revolution and signs that read ‘our fallen heroes, we will remain loyal to our cause,’ ‘we are moving steadily on the road to victory,’ ‘a salute from the free people of Kafar Aweed to the free people of Sudan.’ (Source: Syrian Coalition’s Media Department)
