Incident date
September 27, 2022
LOCATION
قرية كلبيت ,ريف ادلب الشمالي,ادلب, Kalbid area, Aleppo, SyriaOn September 27th 2022, between two and eight civilians were reportedly injured, including an elderly woman and a young man, when a Russian air strike hit a refugee camp in the Kalbid area, near the Bal al-Hawa border crossing in Syria. One Syrian Civil Defense volunteer, Hamza Al-Jassem, stated after being at the scene, “it
Summary
Incident date
September 23, 2022
LOCATION
تديل, Tadel village, Aleppo, SyriaFive civilians were reported wounded from the same family, including two children – one critically, two women and a man, as a result of Russian or Syrian regime forces’ thermal guided missile which hit their car, as they returned from olive picking in Tadel Village in the western countryside of Aleppo on September 23rd 2022.
Summary
Incident date
September 17, 2022
LOCATION
حفسرجة, Hafsarja, Idlib, SyriaOn September 17th 2022, Russian forces allegedly hit to stone-cutting sawmills on the outskirts of Hafsarja village, west of Idlib, which resulted in the injury of a worker. Syrian Network for Human Rights reported that the worker was identified as Ghaith al Kouz. The Syrian Civil Defense team inspected the area and found that the
Summary
Incident date
September 17, 2022
LOCATION
كفر عمة, Kaframma, Aleppo, SyriaOne civilian, a boy or young man named Muhammad Hamdo Arab, was reported killed and his brother, Qusai Hamdo Arab, was wounded when an artillery shell hit civilian homes in the village of Kafr Amma in the western countryside of Aleppo, Syria on September 17th 2022. It is a contested event as a result of
Summary
Incident date
September 8, 2022
LOCATION
ديرسنبل, Deirsnbul, Idlib, SyriaOne woman was wounded by reported artillery shelling as a result of either Russian or Syrian regime forces on Deir Sunbal village, south of Idlib, on September 8th 2022. Apparently the villages of Benin and Shanan were also bombed but there were no injuries reported.
Summary
Incident date
September 8, 2022
LOCATION
الغفر, Al Ghafir, Idlib, SyriaAn alleged Russian air raid injured five civilians using surface-to-surface missiles loaded with cluster bombs in Al Ghafar in Idlib province on September 8th, 2022. The Syrian Civil Defense (SCD) reported that 5 civilians were injured and that the strikes killed dozens of goats and sheep owned by a local shepherd and farmer. The strikes
Summary
Incident date
September 8, 2022
LOCATION
حفسرجة, Hafsarja, Idlib, SyriaBetween two to seven civilians were killed including one to three children and seven to 16 other civilians were wounded, in an alleged Russian airstrike destroying a house and a stone sawmill in Hafsarja in Idlib province on September 8th, 2022. Al Khabour news reported the lowest number of civilians killed at two and the Syrian
Summary
Incident date
September 6, 2022
LOCATION
شنان, Shanan, Idlib, SyriaBetween one to four civilians were reported wounded as a result of artillery shelling reported to be from either Syrian regime or Russian forces. The shelling targeted Shanan village in Jabal al Saweya, south of Idlib on September 6th 2022. Most sources reported that one civilian, a woman, was injured, but @HalabTodayTV was the only
Summary
Incident date
September 3, 2022
LOCATION
الفطيرة, Al Fatira, Idlib, SyriaAt least one elderly woman was injured when alleged Russian or regime artillery shelling struck the town of Al Fatira on September 3, 2022. According to @SyriaCivilDefe, an elderly woman was injured by artillery shelling carried out by the regime and Russian forces on civilian homes in the town of Al Fatira. The Civil Defense
Summary
Incident date
August 29, 2022
LOCATION
الغانية, Al Ghaniya, Idlib, SyriaAt least one woman was injured in alleged Russian or regime shelling of the town of Al Ghaniya on August 29, 2022. @SyriaCivilDefe tweeted that a woman was injured by intense artillery shelling carried out by the regime or Russian forces on the town of Al Ghaniya. @snhr also identified a woman as being wounded,
Summary
Incident date
August 18, 2022
LOCATION
قرية كدورة, Kadora village, Idlib, SyriaTwo civilians were injured by alleged Russian or regime shelling of the village of Kadora on August 18, 2022. The Syrian Civil Defense reported that two civilians picking figs were injured by artillery shelling carried out by Russian or regime forces on a farm near Kadora village. The majority of sources attributed the shelling to
Summary
Incident date
August 16, 2022
LOCATION
كنصفرة, Kansafra, Idlib, SyriaAt least two people were killed and between one and two others were injured when a previous shelling remnant exploded in the town of Kansafra, south of Idlib on the 16th of August 2022. The Syrian Civil Defense reported that two people were killed and another was injured. According to Syrian Network for Human Rights,
Summary
Incident date
August 16, 2022
LOCATION
معارة النعسان, Maarat Al-Nasan, Idlib, SyriaThe town Maarat al Naasan was attacked by cluster bombs allegedly as a result of Syrian and Russian regime forces after midnight on August 16th 2022. Local sources also blamed Iranian-backed militas. While no civilian deaths are reported, a seven year old boy got lightly injured on his arm by a life bullet, while he
Summary
Incident date
August 15, 2022
LOCATION
بلدة قسطون جنوبي ,ادلب, Qastoun, Idlib, SyriaAn eleven year old boy called Abdul-Wahhab Ibn Hassan Al-Hanawi was reportedly killed as a result of the remnants of a cluster bomb in the town of Qastoun, west of Hama on the August 15th 2022. According to the Syrian Civil Defense, the killing of Abdul-Wahab marks the second death through unexploded remnants within three
Summary
Incident date
August 13, 2022
LOCATION
معارة النعسان,, Maret Al Nassan, Idlib, SyriaA seven-year old boy, Mohammed Abdel Kafi, also referred to as Zain Abdul Kafi Al-Masli, was injured by a shrapnel from artillery fire while playing next to his home in Ma’arat Al Nassan, east of Idlib on August 13th 2022. According to @hafeztaraman, the incident occured in the evening before the Maghrib call to prayer.
Summary
Incident date
August 13, 2022
LOCATION
بالقرب من بلدة النيرب بريف إدلب الجنوبي الشرقي, Near the town of Neirab in the southeastern countryside of Idlib, Idlib, SyriaOne civilian, Amer Hussein al Asmar, from the town Halfaya was killed by a landmine explosion of the remnants of the battles near Jubas while he was collecting figs near the town of Neirab in the southeastern countryside of Idlib on August 13th 2022. Local media sources state that the victim was married and left
Summary
Incident date
LOCATION
الباره, Al Bara, Idlib, SyriaA woman was injured in an alleged missile strike by Russian or Syrian regime forces in the Al Bara district in Jabal Al Zawiya in southern Idlib on August 6th, 2022. The woman’s injuries were not specified though @RadioAlKul tweeted that she was “slightly injured” whereas all other sources reported that she was injured without
Summary
Incident date
August 2, 2022
LOCATION
البارة, Al Bara, Idlib, SyriaOne civilian farmer was injured in an alleged Russian or Syrian thermal missile attack which destroyed his car on the morning of August 2nd, 2022 in Al Bara, a southern town of Idlib. No further reports of civilian harm have been reported. The farmer was named by @abualisar18 and @g5VgKRPXfPQdfz9 as Ammar Mustafa Al-Qajji. He
Summary
Incident date
July 30, 2022
LOCATION
كفرتعال, Kafr Taal, Aleppo, SyriaTwo children were killed and up to two others were injured in artillery shelling allegedly carried out by Russian forces, the Syrian regime, or the Syrian Democratic Forces. The Syrian Civil Defense tweeted (@SyriaCivilDefe) that two children, Youssef and Abdul Baset Jadoua, were killed and the father of Youssef, named Mustafa Jamil Jadoua, and Ahmed
Summary
Incident date
July 27, 2022
LOCATION
كفرتعال, Kafr Taal, Aleppo, SyriaOne civilian, a young man, was injured when Russian or Syrian regime forces shelled Kafr Taal in the western Aleppo countryside on July 27th 2022. There is no further information at this time.
Summary
Incident date
July 25, 2022
LOCATION
شنان, Shanan village, Idlib, SyriaOne child was injured as a result of artillery shelling by Russian or Syrian regime action targeting the village of Shanan, south of Idlib on Sunday 24th July 2022. The Syrian Civil Defense reported that they took the injured child to hospital for treatment and that he was injured “lightly”.
Summary
Incident date
July 22, 2022
LOCATION
الموزرة, Al Mozra, Idlib, SyriaAt least one civilian was injured in alleged Syrian regime or Russian shelling of the village of Al Mozra on July 22, 2022. The Syrian Civil Defense (@SyriaCivilDefe) tweeted that one civilian was wounded by artillery shelling by the Syrian regime and Russian forces on the village of Al Mozra. Various other sources, including the
Summary
Incident date
July 22, 2022
LOCATION
الجديدة, Al Jadida, Idlib, SyriaUp to eight civilians, including four to five children, were killed and up to 17 civilians, including between eight and nine children and a woman, were injured in alleged Russian airstrikes on the outskirts of Al-Jadida village and the outskirts of Al-Janoudia village on July 22, 2022. The Syrian Civil Defense (@SyriaCivilDefe) tweeted that seven
Summary
Incident date
July 8, 2022
LOCATION
بليون, Balion, Idlib, SyriaAt least one civilian, a young man, was injured in alleged Russian or regime artillery shelling of the village of Balion on July 8, 2022. According to @SyriaCivilDefe, a young man was wounded in artillery shelling of the village of Balion by the regime and Russian forces. Civil Defense volunteers took the injured man to
Summary
Incident date
July 4, 2022
LOCATION
معارة النعسان, Maret Al Nassan, Idlib, SyriaA pregnant woman and a child were killed and between one and three others, including up to two children, were injured in alleged Russian or regime artillery/heavy machine gun attack on the village of Maret Al Nassan on July 4, 2022. According to @SyriaCivilDefe, a woman was killed and two children were injured in alleged
Summary
Incident date
June 16, 2022
LOCATION
القاهرة, Al Kahira, Hama, SyriaAt least one civilian was injured in alleged Russian or regime strikes on the town of Al Kahira on June 16, 2022. The Syrian Civil Defense reported that a civilian was wounded when Syrian regime and Russian forces struck his car with a guided missile in the town of Al Kahira in Al-Ghab Plain. A tweet
Summary
Share on
Survivors of the assault on the Al-Shifa hospital in northern Syria still seeking answers
A year on from a devastating assault on the main hospital in the Syrian city of Afrin, a new Airwars visual investigation has pieced together key features of the attack.
At least 19 people were reportedly killed in two strikes on the Al-Shifa hospital on June 12th, 2021 in what was the single deadliest incident tracked by Airwars in Syria during 2021.
Hospital attacks in Syria are sadly common, with both the Syrian government and allied Russian forces striking dozens of them since the civil war began in 2011. The US-led Coalition against the so-called Islamic State, Turkey and Kurdish groups have also all been accused of targeting medical facilities.
But the Al-Shifa hospital strike was unusual in that the survivors didn’t all identify the same culprit. Some accused the Syrian regime, others the Russians, while others still blamed the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces or allied Kurdish militias. Some even claimed Turkey was responsible for an attack in a city under its influence.
By bringing together satellite imagery, CCTV footage, witness testimony and expert analysis, Airwars created a comprehensive visual assessment of the strike. We were seeking to understand what munition was used and where the rocket was fired from.
While the investigation was not able to definitively conclude which party was responsible, it did define a seven-kilometre wide region from where the rockets were likely launched. In that area the Syrian regime, SDF and Russians all operated.
“We hope that by publishing this investigation on the anniversary of this horrific attack, we will spark a new conversation about the brazen targeting of a hospital,” Emily Tripp, Airwars’ Director, said.
“This case is one of far too many in Syria’s long civil war where families are left seeking answers about who killed their loved ones.”
The full visual investigation is available here.
The context
Afrin is a geopolitically significant city – located at the forefront between multiple belligerents in the 11-year Syrian civil war.
The city is close to the Turkish border and is currently under the control of Turkish-backed groups that operate under the broad title of the Syrian National Army (SNA).
Turkey has fought significant conflicts with Kurdish groups, including the SDF – the closest ally of the United States in Syria. The SDF controls much of the territory to the east of Afrin.
At the time of the strike the Syrian government and its Russian backers also had military capabilities in the region, controlling territory to the southeast of Afrin, while also being known to operate in the east. Russian and Syrian government forces have been the most common strikers of hospitals during the civil war.
Al-Shifa hospital is located in the west of the city and is reportedly close to multiple Turkish government and SNA buildings. The hospital is partly run by the Syrian American Medical Society (SAMS).
At the time of the attack Turkish president Erodogan accused the SDF, who in turn accused Syrian government forces. Allegations were also made against Russian forces and even Turkey itself.
The strikes
Most investigations of this type begin by analysing the remnants of the missiles at the scene. However, according to medical sources on the ground, Turkish-backed authorities removed all shrapnel and other physical evidence from the hospital in the hours after the attack, and also prevented activists and media from accessing the site for several hours. Without these vital clues, we drew on other forms of evidence that might give us an idea of where the projectiles might have been launched from.
Airwars compiled all available visual evidence, including drone footage, CCTV recordings provided by SAMS, social media posts, photographs and satellite imagery. We also gathered witness testimony, including speaking to survivors. Using this information we produced a 3D model of the hospital, mapping the impact locations.
The first strike hit the alleyway of the emergency department at 6.55pm – CCTV footage captured the explosion before cutting out shortly after as the electricity failed. The strike caused significant damage to buildings on both sides of the alleyway and reportedly killed, among others, a woman giving birth.
“It was terrifying. It felt like an earthquake,” medic Mohammed al-Aghawani, who was injured in the attack, told Airwars. “At first I didn’t understand what had happened – whether I was alive or dead.”
The second strike, occurring a few seconds later, hit the main building and damaged the physiotherapy, paediatrics, ENT and surgical clinics. Photographs of the second impact location show a metal rafter broken and bent in half by the projectile as it penetrated the wall.
From this we determined that the projectile would have arrived at an angle perpendicular to the bend of the bar. Plotting this onto a wider map, we concluded that the projectile must have come from a near due easterly direction.
The third strike
Hoping to narrow down the potential launch area further, we extended our 3D model to map a third impact location allegedly from the same volley of projectiles. Dr. Amin Qosho was at sitting at his kitchen table in his apartment home a few hundred metres away from the hospital. Around 7pm a projectile struck the building opposite his apartment. Instead of penetrating the wall, it hit the building’s reinforced elevator shaft, sending a large spread of shrapnel towards Qosho’s balcony and through his door, killing him instantly.
Using video footage and photographs of this impact location we were able to determine the relative height of the building struck and the building directly to the east. Building upon our previous determination that the projectile came from the east, we concluded that the angle of impact must have been high enough to clear the neighbouring building.
To narrow down our launch area further we investigated the munition used.
The type of weapon
While the Turkish-backed authorities removed all munitions remnants from the hospital itself, an image shared on social media that day showed a projectile found between Qosho’s home and the Al-Shifa hospital.
Images showing part of what appears to be remnants of a 122mm BM-21 rocket (spring-loaded fins) taken ~175m from the site of the Afrin hospital attack that killed over a dozen. Possibly from the first part of the double tap strike, hitting surrounding area
36.509510, 36.860433 pic.twitter.com/w8PAUvsTYU
— McKeever (@AKMcKeever) June 14, 2021
The projectile was identified as a 122mm, fired from a BM21 GRAD rocket launcher. This type of launcher was first developed by the Soviet Union in the 1960s but are now a very common – used by multiple sides in the Syrian war. Such launchers fire up to 40 projectiles in a single volley and are inherently inaccurate – designed for open battle fields not urban warfare.
While it was impossible to say with absolute certainty that the hospital and Qosho’s home were also hit by 122mm rockets, it is likely they were from the same volley of rockets.
Firing tables for GRAD rockets give a typical range of between 5 and 20 kilometres. However, using our model we determined that to clear the top of the building to the east, the rocket would have had to enter at a minimum of 23.4 degrees. This narrowed our potential launch area down further to between 12.3 and 20.5 kilometres.
We shared all our visual evidence with a leading world expert in GRAD rockets, Ove Dullum. He agreed that the projectiles came from an easterly direction, adding that the fragment patterns from the impact indicated a low angle of impact, narrowly clearing the neighbouring building to the east.
Compiling his analysis with our own findings we estimate that the rockets were likely fired from the east and within the closer half of our range.
Other investigations have found that the same type of rockets have been launched from the same area, including one by @obretix on a strike that hit the headquarters of a medical first responders organisation in Afrin six weeks after the attack on Al-Shifa hospital.
Conclusion
At the time of the incident, our estimated launch area was mostly under control of the SDF, America’s closest ally in Syria, along with allied militia groups. However control of this region is complicated. Reports in the weeks prior to the attack showed evidence of Russian and Syrian military forces operating within our estimated launch area.
On the 2nd of June, alleged Turkish artillery targeting SDF positions in Mara’anaz reportedly killed a Lieutenant in the Syrian militant, showing the presence and proximity of both the SDF and Regime forces in the area. Two days prior to the Al-Shifa attack, three soldiers from the Syrian military were reportedly injured by alleged Turkish bombardment on Menagh airbase, located within our potential launch area.
As such official designation of responsibility remains unclear. The SDF, Russians and Syrian Government all deny responsibility for this attack on a vital resource.
For the families of the victims and the survivors, the lack of accountability makes the suffering harder.
“I tried to check on the families of the martyrs – their psychological and financial situations are very bad,” Al-Aghawani said. “Personally, every few nights I dream of bombing.”
Airwars invites anyone with additional information to come forward.
Share on
Incident date
May 13, 2022
LOCATION
Леб’яже, Lebyazhe, Kharkiv, UkraineOn 13 May 2022, 4 civilians were reportedly wounded, including which a 15 year-old boy, by Russian shelling in Lebyazhe village, Kharkiv. Sources, quoting the press service of the Kharkiv Regional Prosecutor’s Office, reported that Russian forces shelled twice the area. The first attack was conducted in the morning at around 11 am, and “as