The Syrian Network for Human Rights (SNHR) said that it had recorded 39 massacres that took place in Syria during the month of October, 27 of which were committed by the Assad regime forces.
In a report published on Wednesday, the monitoring group said that Russian forces were responsible for 42% of the total number of the massacres, while the international coalition forces were responsible for 24% more. The Network noted that 59% of the massacres took place in the province of Deir Ezzor.
As of October, a total of 325 massacres have been committed in Syria since the beginning of 2017, the Network said.
According to SNHR’s report, the massacres claimed the lives of 435 people, including 145 children and 85 women. The report indicated that 53% of the victims were children and women.
The rights group said that Assad forces killed 93 people, including 28 children and 20 women, while Russian forces killed 186 civilians, including 65 children and 35 women. The ISIS extremist group killed 35 civilians, including 15 children and five women, while the international coalition forces killed 104 civilians, including 37 children and 25 women. The victims also included 17 people who were killed in attacks that the rights group described as untraceable.
The Network renewed calls for the referral of the situation in Syria to the International Criminal Court (ICC) as it called on Russia to stop blocking UN Security Council resolutions condemning the Assad regime. It also called for the imposition of urgent sanctions on all those involved in widespread violations of human rights in Syria.
The Network also called for the inclusion of militias fighting alongside the Assad regime and which committed massacres against Syrian civilians, especially the Iranian-backed militias, the Hezbollah militia, the Shiite brigades, the National Defense Forces and the Shabiha militias on the UN list of terrorist groups. (Source: Syrian Coalition’s Media Department)