Press release
Syrian Opposition Coalition
Department of Media and Communications
August 09, 2021
Attacks by the Assad regime forces, the Russian occupation, and Iranian militias on southern rural Idlib and northwestern rural Hama have been dangerously escalating since the beginning of June.
Several towns and villages in rural Hama are being subjected to brutal aerial and artillery bombardment, which resulted in the death of many civilians, including children.
The Assad regime and Russia are seeking to achieve military gains on the ground in violation of the ‘de-escalation zones’ agreement with the aim of seizing more territory and displacing the population. Thousands of people were forced to flee their homes in the past two months.
Military escalation, fragmentation of the frontlines, and exploitation of agreements will not remain limited to criminals. The option to ignite the battle fronts will backfire on those who choose it, and will be highly costly for the criminal regime and its enablers. No one can claim they will be able to control its consequences, be they the destruction, mass forced displacement or the creation of new waves of refugees.
It is imperative that the international community restore its role in Syria and assume its responsibilities for what is going on. The major actors in the UN Security Council are required to exert real pressure to stop the escalation in Syria’s northwest and south, and support political transition in accordance with the Geneva Communique of 2012 and UN Security Council Resolutions 2118 and 2254 and in accordance with the UN General Assembly resolution 67/262 which provides for the formation of a transitional governing body with full executive powers.
