At least 9 members of the medical staff and rescue workers were killed in 44 attacks by the Assad regime and Russian forces in October, a rights group said.
In a report released on Thursday, the Syrian Network for Human Rights (SNHR) said that the Assad regime air force bombed 31 medical facilities, 3 rescue teams and 15 civil defense centers, killing 4 rescue workers, 2 doctors, a nurse, and a paramedic while the Russian air force targeted 6 medical facilities and 7 ambulances, killing one medical staff member.
The SNHR called on the UN Security Council to take urgent, concrete action to stop indiscriminate bombardment on civilian areas and vital civilian facilities. It also called for a renewed pressure on the UN Security Council to refer the situation in Syria to the International Criminal Court.
The rights group pointed out that most of the attacks targeted unarmed civilians, which clearly constitutes a violation of the UN Security Council resolutions 2139 and 2254 calling for stopping indiscriminate bombardment on civilian areas and objects. The SNHR stressed that Russian and Assad regime attacks on medical and civil defense centers as well as medical and civil defense personnel represent a blatant violation of the international humanitarian law and constitute war crimes and crimes against humanity.
The rights group urged the international community to step up relief aid to the Syrian people; protect civilians from daily killings; and increase pressure on the Assad regime to lift blockades on the besieged areas.
The Syrian Coalition said that the deliberate targeting of civilians using high-explosive weapons is clearly aimed at maximizing the number of casualties; causing mayhem; and forcing civilians to leave their homes. It stressed that the continued silence by the international community over these crimes contributes to the killing and destruction in Syria.
In rural Damascus, meanwhile, activists said that at least 3 civilians were killed and many more injured in airstrikes by the Assad regime forces on the town of Douma on Thursday. Regime helicopters also dropped barrel bombs, some filled with napalm, on the town of Khan Alsheeh in western rural Damascus. Regime forces and the Hezbollah militia have recently renewed attempts to the storm the besieged town.
Russian jets raided the Shifouniya farmlands and the town of Reihan in eastern Gouta, causing material damage. (Source: Syrian Coalition)
