The Syrian Network for Human Rights (SNHR) reported that a total of 501 civilians were killed in Syria during the first half of 2023. The report highlighted that in June alone, 118 civilians lost their lives, including 15 children, 19 women, and four victims who died as a result of torture.
According to the rights group’s report issued on Sunday, the Assad regime was responsible for the deaths of 62 civilians, including five children and four women. Additionally, Russian forces were accountable for the deaths of five civilians, while ISIS was responsible for one civilian death. Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham was reported to have killed seven civilians, including two women. The report also recorded that the PYD militia was responsible for the deaths of 20 civilians, including five children and two women. The remaining 409 civilian deaths, including 61 children and 34 women, were attributed to other parties.
The report highlighted that the highest death toll in the first half of the year was in Daraa province, accounting for 25% of the total death toll. Deir Ezzor followed with a rate of approximately 22%, while Hama and Aleppo governorates each accounted for approximately 12%.
In June, the report documented 118 civilian deaths, including 15 children and 19 women, caused by the Assad regime forces. Additionally, five civilians were killed by Russian forces, four by Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (including two women), and one by the international coalition forces. The report stated that in June, other parties were responsible for the deaths of 100 civilians, including 14 children and 16 women.
The report also noted that three medical personnel were among the victims killed in the first half of the year by the Assad regime forces. It documented the deaths of one media activist and one civil defense volunteer at the hands of other parties during the same period.
During the first half of the year, the report documented the deaths of 20 individuals due to torture, including one child and one woman. Six of these deaths were attributed to the Assad regime, four to Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (including one woman), five to the PYD militia (including one child), and five to other parties. In June, four deaths due to torture were recorded, including one woman.
The report emphasized the urgent need for the Assad regime to cease its indiscriminate bombing and targeting of residential areas, hospitals, schools, and public markets, as well as the need to halt the torture taking place in detention centers, which has led to the deaths of numerous Syrian citizens. It called for compliance with UN Security Council resolutions and customary humanitarian law.
The SNHR stressed the importance of referring Syria to the International Criminal Court and holding all responsible parties accountable, including the Russian regime, whose involvement in war crimes has been proven.
(Source: SOC’s Media Department)
