(Previous Incident Codes: R2837RS3033)

At least four and as many as 14 civilians including ar least one woman and one child were killed and several others wounded in alleged Russian or regime airstrikes on Saqba, eastern Ghouta, Damascus, local media reported.

The strikes in Saqba were part of a widespread intensified shelling of multiple residential neighbourhoods in eastern Ghouta on February 19th, local media reported. Orient News described the shelling as a “genocide.”

While several sources reported four fatalities, including one woman, other reports spanned from nine to 14 civilian deaths, the highest reported by Smart News Agency. Zaman al-Wasl and Ghouta_GMC identified 14 victims by name, hereof two women and one child. Besides the child, none of the remaining victims’ ages were specified.

Sources were conflicted in terms of culpability. While several, including Smart News Agency and Orient News pointed to both the Syrian regime and Russia, the Syrian Network for Human Rights and Baladi News blamed only the Syrian regime. Baladi News’ correspondent reported that “regime warplanes” launched more than 60 rockets.

According to Smart News Agency’s report, it is likely that both belligerents were responsible. The news channel cited the Civil Defence, who wrote on Facebook that Russian airstrikes had killed four civilians while adding that additionally ten civilians had been killed just hours previously by regime warplanes.