The Syrian Opposition Coalition (SOC) said that Assad’s forces’ continuous targeting of the Idlib countryside, and the killing of ten civilians and their children on Saturday, is a horrific crime that requires a firm international stance that strengthens paths of accountability for this regime.
In a press release issued on Saturday, the SOC said that the village of Qaqfin in the Idlib countryside fell victim to bombing by Assad’s forces on Saturday. The attack specifically targeted a family while harvesting olives, resulting in the tragic loss of nine innocent lives, including women and children.
The SOC urgently called on the countries guaranteeing the Astana process to uphold the understandings and protocols they have signed regarding the ceasefire. It urged them to prevent any hostile acts targeting civilians and public facilities, emphasizing the necessity of deterring the Assad regime and its allied militias.
The SOC underscored that the Assad regime persistently follows a criminal approach, blatantly disregarding international laws and norms that safeguard civilian lives and condemn their direct targeting. Exploiting international inaction and the absence of a concerted will to activate accountability mechanisms, the regime continues its horrifying crimes against innocent Syrians.
The SOC appealed to the UN Security Council to condemn the war crime perpetrated today. It calls for decisive action through legal and political means to halt the crimes of the Assad regime and its allies. The SOC demands serious efforts to hold them accountable, impose stringent international sanctions, and establish a concrete mechanism for accountability.
The SOC stressed that lasting security, stability, and peace hinge on implementing Security Council Resolution 2254 (2015). It emphasizes the need to fulfill the legitimate aspirations of the Syrian people for a secure, dignified state founded on principles of freedom, law, justice, and democracy.
(Source: SOC’s Media Department)
