Three civilians were killed and 26 others were wounded in artillery shelling by the Assad regime forces on the village of Hwayez in northwestern rural Hama in the period between February 12 and March 31. The shelling has also forced thousands of civilians to flee their homes.
In an interview with the local news network Smart News, head of the local council, Mohammed Khattab, said that the Assad regime forces stationed in the villages of Al-Kurayem and Al-Rasif fired more than 5,348 mortar rounds and 769 artillery on the village of Hwayez in the same period.
The council has already declared Hwayez and al-Hurriya disaster areas because of the intense shelling by the Assad regime and its allied militias. It indicated that the artillery shelling targeted five schools and four mosques, causing massive material damage.
Local sources pointed out that the shelling has led to the displacement of about 950 households since mid-February.
The violent artillery and rocket shelling by the Assad regime also forced about 2,100 households to flee their homes in the nearby village of Shariah to adjacent areas.
The majority of the displaced households sought refuge in northern rural Idlib or near the Turkish observation points to escape the shelling.
Many towns and villages in Hama countryside have been subjected to intensified bombing campaign by the Assad regime forces resulting in heavy civilian casualties although the area is covered by the Idlib Agreement. (Source: Syrian Coalition’s Media Department)
