A single source reported that three civilians were injured in alleged YPG strikes on Alawa village, Raqqa governorate, on September 4th, 2020.
Khabour wrote that “three civilians were injured by the bombing of the #PYD_PKK militia on Alawa village west of Tel Abid city, north of Raqqa.”
Currently, further information is unavailable to Airwars.
The local time of the incident is unknown.
A child was killed after an unexploded shell from earlier shelling by alleged Kurdish forces on the town of Mare’a exploded on June 28th, 2020. It is unclear when exactly the munition was fired.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that it had “documented the death of a child under the age of 18, as a result of the explosion of a shell from the remnants of the previous bombing of the Kurdish forces on the town of Mare’a, which is under the control of the pro-Ankara factions in the northern countryside of Aleppo.”
Local activists told Bawabat Aleppo that the victim was the 14-year-old boy Hamza Ibrahim, who was displaced from the village of Khansasir, south of Aleppo. Bawabat Aleppo pointed to the Syrian Democratic Forces as responsible for the previously unexploded mortar shell.
Bawabat Aleppo added that Syrian Civil Defence teams “went to the location of the explosion to secure it and prevent civilians from approaching, fearing the presence of other bombing remnants.”
The local time of the incident is unknown.
A number of civilians including two children were injured in an alleged YPG artillery strike on Afrin city, Aleppo governorate, on March 19th, 2020, according to local sources.
The Syrian Civil Defence in Aleppo reported that the 1-year-old Abdel Halim Hassan and 15-year-old Safa Abu Fras were injured in a missile attack that targeted a residential neighborhood of Afrin. SCD teams treated the wounded.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that “Kurdish forces bombed the city of Afrin with rocket-propelled grenades, causing several casualties.”
Bawaba Aleppo blamed the Qasd militia for the attack.
The local time of the incident is unknown.
Five civilians, including two children and a woman, were killed and up to 17 were injured in alleged YPG artillery strikes on a market in Afrin, north of Aleppo, on March 18th, 2020, according to local sources.
Ibrahim Abu Al-Laith from the media office of the Syrian Civil Defence told Bawaba Aleppo that “five shells landed in a local market in the centre of Afrin, killing five civilians and wounding seven others, in varying conditions, which were transferred to Turkish hospitals.” SCD later published the names of the killed victims on Facebook, including the names of two children, and the names of those wounded.
Step News Agency reported that the Qasd militia targeted Villat Street with grad missiles, killing five civilians and wounding 17. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported 12 injured, including women and children, and material damage in the targeted areas. The Syrian Network for Human Rights reported that the shelling partially destroyed shops and damaged the market’s facilities.
According to TRT Arabi, the Turkish Ministry of Defense stated that three civilians were killed and nine others were injured due to missile shelling with five Grad rockets, blaming the YPG for the attack. However, the Syrian Civil Defence published the names of five killed civilians.
Among the victims were Mohamed Al Sayed (25) and his nephew Abdullah Al Sayed (10). The child Khaled Al Dabaan was also killed. Abdulkarim Al Halabi wrote on Facebook that the 12-year-old boy “dreamed that he would become a [football] player and he always came to practice first, in addition to that he was working in a small shop and he would help his parents.”
Al Modon’s correspondent Muhammad Ayoub reported that “two shells landed near the Dersem Hospital in Al Failat Street, and two shells near the Al Shifa’ Hospital near Mazout Street, and a shell on Mazout Street. It resulted in great material damage in the shops near the site.” Several sources reported that the incident occured in the afternoon.
Step added that “the Syrian Civil Defense teams rushed to the area to help the wounded and the injured and transport them to the field hospitals, while the opposition forces closed the street in the city centre until the injured were transported.”
Bawaba Aleppo blamed the Syrian Democratic Forces for the attack, others more specifically the Al Qasd militia. Edlib Media Center reported that Turkish forces “retaliated with firing several shells at the locations of the Qasd militia in Shwaragha and Meng in the northern countryside of Aleppo.”
The incident occured in the afternoon.
The victims were named as:
Family members (2)
Family members (2)
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Up to three civilians were reported injured in alleged YPG shelling on Afrin city in Aleppo, Syria on March 6th, 2020, according to local sources.
@Step_Agency said that “two civilians were wounded due to the artillery shelling that targeted the city of Afrin, north of Aleppo, from the militia points of Qasd surrounding the area.”
@afrinnow tweeted that “two civilians were wounded by two shells shortly before in the city of Afrin, which came from the regime-controlled areas and the YPG.”
Whereas Macro Media Center only reported one wounded civilian, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights put the injury toll at three, writing that “this evening [March 6], Kurdish forces shelled residential neighbourhoods in the city of Afrin, which is controlled by pro-Turkish factions, wounding three people with varying injuries.”
The incident occured in the evening.
Two people were killed and an unknown number of civilians was reported wounded in alleged YPG artillery strikes on the town of Jibreen, Aleppo governorate, on March 2nd, 2020, according to local sources. There are conflicting reports on whether the fatalities were civilians or militants.
Shaam Network reported that “violent clashes took place between the Syrian National Army and members of the Syrian Democratic Forces ‘Qasd’ on the axis of Jibreen – Azaz in the northern countryside, after the latter’s infiltration attempt in the area, and SDF then bombed the town of Jibreen with artillery shells, which led to the fall of two civilian martyrs and wounding others.”
@Step_Agency tweeted: “Two people killed and others wounded among civilians, as a result of artillery shelling in the town of Jibreen, north of Aleppo, from the points of the SDF militia surrounding the area.”
@AleppoAMC reported that “two civilians were killed by artillery shelling of SDF militia, targeting the town of Jibreen in the northern countryside of Aleppo.”
According to @watyy112552, two YPG militants were killed. Hence, it is unclear if the two reported fatalities were civilians or militants.
The local time of the incident is unknown.
Airwars research shows that at least 2,214 civilians were locally alleged killed by international military actions across Syria, Iraq, Libya, and Somalia during 2019 – a 42% decrease in minimum claimed deaths on the previous year. This sharp fall was largely because deaths from reported US-led Coalition actions plummeted following the territorial defeat of ISIS in Syria in March.
However, elsewhere civilians remained in significant danger. Russian strikes in support of the Assad regime claimed at least 1,000 lives in the fierce Idlib and Hama offensives. Meanwhile, Turkey’s invasion of northern Syria in October saw over 300 non-combatants alleged killed.
The year also saw alarming developments in Libya. From April, the Libyan National Army’s Tripoli offensive had a devastating impact on civilians. As more foreign powers joined the conflict, alleged deaths rose by an astonishing 720% on 2018. Almost half of all civilian deaths in Libya’s civil war since 2012 occurred last year.
Download our full annual report for 2019
On March 23rd, after 55 months of war, ISIS was finally ousted from Syria, when the Syrian Democratic Forces seized the town of al-Baghuz al Fawqani in Ezzor governorate. This followed the terror group’s earlier defeat in Iraq in December 2017.
Yet this final assault came at a terrible cost for civilians trapped on the ground. Of the minimum of 2,214 civilians locally alleged killed during 2019, at least 470 deaths (21%) reportedly occurred as a result of US-led Coalition strikes in the first quarter of 2019, in Deir Ezzor governorate.
The aftermath of alleged Coalition shelling of Al Baghouz camp, March 18th – 19th 2019, which allegedly killed at least 160 civilians (via Raqqa is Being Slaughtered Silently)
After March 23rd, with ISIS downgraded to an insurgency, there was a significant winding down in Coalition strikes. As a result, locally alleged civilian deaths from alliance actions rapidly declined.
For the first time in five years, the Coalition was no longer the primary driver of civilian harm in Airwars monitoring. Indeed, our tracking shows that many more civilians were claimed killed by almost every other monitored belligerent than by the US-led alliance between April and December 2019.
With this shift away from Coalition civilian deaths, Airwars’ focus with the alliance and with partner militaries began moving towards post-conflict restitution and reconciliation engagements.
Civilians may finally have gained respite from Coalition strikes, but 2019 saw them face increased danger on other fronts. Russia’s ongoing campaign in Syria continued to devastate civilian populations and infrastructure.
In total, our researchers tracked at least 1,000 civilian deaths in 710 casualty incidents reportedly carried out by Russia. Some 81% of these events were in Idlib governorate, where Russia lent its formidable airpower to the regime’s offensive to oust the rebels.
The aftermath of an alleged Russian airstrike on a popular market in Saraqib on July 30th (via Edlib Media Center).
Additionally, in October, Syria’s civilians faced a new threat from Turkey. The offensive came against a backdrop of repeated Turkish threats to unilaterally invade northern Syria. The chaotic withdrawal of US forces on October 7th gave Turkey a green light to launch its ‘Operation Peace Spring’.
Airwars research shows that there were between 246 and 314 locally alleged civilian deaths in 207 casualty incidents involving both sides during the final three months of 2019. Most disturbingly, there were numerous claims of war crimes by both sides, including summary executions of civilians and enemy fighters.
Meanwhile, civilian harm spiralled in Libya. Field Marshall Khalifa Haftar’s self-styled Libyan National Army (LNA) launched its offensive on Tripoli in April. However, what was intended to be a brief conflict soon turned into a protracted siege, with foreign powers playing an increased role, particularly in a proxy drone war between the United Arab Emirates and Turkey.
The impact on civilians was dire. Between April 4th and December 31st 2019, local sources reported between 279 and 399 civilian deaths. A measure of the intensity of 2019’s bombing is shown by the fact that more than 48% of all locally reported civilian fatalities in Libya’s civil war since 2012 occurred during the nine months between April and December 2019.
Image caption translation: “Warlord Haftar’s warplane bombs oil facility and tannery in Tajoura, east Tripoli”, June 19th 2019 (via Libya Observer)
In April, Airwars expanded its conflict portfolio when it took over the Bureau of Investigative Journalism’s long running monitoring of US counter terrorism drone strikes and civilian harm claims in Yemen, Somalia, and Pakistan. We are currently reviewing this significant dataset using Airwars’ own internationally-respected methodology.
Our assessment of US air and ground operations in Somalia since 2007 is now complete – with our annual report revealing that a maximum of 44 civilian deaths were alleged during 2019, in thirteen locally claimed civilian harm events. Overall the US declared 63 airstrikes against both al Shabaab and ISIS for the year – the highest ever tally.
Our emphasis at Airwars has always been working on behalf of affected civilians. Throughout 2019, our advocacy teams continued to engage with the US-led Coalition and its allies. More than half of all Coalition-conceded conceded civilian harm events during the year were Airwars referrals for example – with at least 220 additional deaths conceded.
Substantial talks on transparency and accountability for civilian harm were also held with senior Pentagon officials; with the British and Dutch ministries of defence; and with NATO’s Allied Rapid Reaction Corps.
In November, the Netherlands finally admitted responsibility for a June 2015 strike in Hawijah, Iraq, which killed at least 70 civilians, according to locals. Airwars is now partnering with a number of Dutch NGOs and academics, with a focus on securing long term improvements in transparency and accountability for civilian harm by the Netherlands military.
“Since Airwars began in 2014, our exceptional team has tracked more than 50,000 locally reported civilian deaths across several conflict nations,” notes Airwars director Chris Woods. “As our 2019 report demonstrates, civilian harm remains a constant in war. Yet too often, belligerents deny or downplay civilian harm – even when local communities themselves are making clear the true costs of conflict.”
Download our full annual report for 2019
Scene of a devastating Coalition strike at Hawijah, Iraq which killed up to 70 civilians (via Iraqi Spring)
Four civilians, including a child, were reportedly injured in alleged YPG or Syrian regime artillery strikes on the village of Burj Haidar, Afrin governorate, on February 11th, 2020, according to SMART News.
SMART reported that, according to the Syrian Civil Defence, “a child and three civilians were wounded in the village of Burj Haidar, located in the Afrin region, north of Aleppo, as a result of being targeted with mortars from the areas of control of the nearby Kurdish People’s Protection Units.”
According to Al Araby, the Syrian regime was responsible for the artillery shelling on the village.
Al Moharar Media also reported that “a child and three people were wounded by artillery shelling in the village of Burj Haidar in Afrin countryside”, but did not specify a belligerent.
The local time of the incident is unknown.