Civilian Casualties

Civilian Casualties

Incident Code

R4352

Incident date

July 22, 2021

Location

ابلين, Iblin, Idlib, Syria

Geolocation

35.716665, 36.499157 Note: The accuracy of this location is to Town level. Continue to map

Airwars assessment

At least seven civilians, including three to four children and a woman, were killed and seven other civilians, including two children and one to two women, were injured in alleged Russian or regime artillery shelling the morning of July 22, 2021.

According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, “the strikes have killed seven civilians including a woman and three children, in the morning, in a new ground bombardment by the regime forces on two neighborhoods in Ibleen village”. They also added that “the number of deaths is expected to rise because some of those wounded sustained serious injuries.”

Syrian Civil Defense also reported that seven civilians were killed, including 4 children and a woman, and “7 others were wounded, including two girls and a woman, all of them from the same family.”

Activist “Abdul Razzaq Al-Madhi” from the village of “Iblin” said in an interview with “Zaman Al-Wasl” that “7 others were wounded, including two girls and two women, as a result of the bombing”.

Step News Agency referred to “children, women and the elderly, from the Harmoush family” as being among the seven civilians killed.

@NagiNajjar tweeted the names of the victims who were killed: Emad Fouad Harmoush (man), Fouad Mustafa Harmoush (man), Khadija Mustafa Al-Fouad (child), Alaa Mustafa Al-Fouad (child), Maryam Mustafa Al-Fouad (child), Fouad Mustafa Harmoush (Child), Fatima Nimr (Mustafa’s wife). A tweet from @77yBFnqQYzUS2Ot identified Fouad Mustafa Harmoush as being the grandfather.

Civil Defense volunteer Hossam Al-Sheikh talked about the moments of saving the two girls, Hanadi and her sister Doaa Mustafa Harmoush, from under the rubble of their house in Iblin, south of Idlib: “At the moment of a call, defense, evacuate the place. It will return to work. The option that follows immediately and without thinking, we must take is evacuation, but when you see the eyes of two children under the rubble, the look of fatigue, pain and fear, and a voice crying “Don’t leave us”, here is over. The decision is no longer thought of, and the only option is that We don’t leave, either we follow before the double targeting or we are a victim with them, at this moment I felt them my daughters, how do we want to leave our daughters and evacuate the place, our fate is their fate if what happened. The situation is very difficult and the options are even more difficult, and thank God, we were able this time to catch up with them before the bombing is repeated and we evacuate the place, but at the same moment we looked at them, I remembered my fellow volunteers whom we lost, and many of them in the same position today lost their lives by the double bombing.”

Rozana News reported that one Syrian woman exclaimed “Oh, they died, all of them,” upon her arrival to check on her family’s home, which was destroyed by artillery shelling. They mention another video clip showing “a child in Ibelin, crying when inspecting the bodies of his father and grandfather, and screaming, “Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, I want to see my grandfather.. Oh, my grandfather, my grandfather.”

Shaam News Network also reported that the White Helmets “indicated that the bombing was carried out with laser-guided shells (Krasnopol), and pointed out that its field teams rescued the injured and retrieved the bodies from under the rubble of their house.”

Sources were conflicted as to who was responsible for the strikes. While various sources, including Shaam News Network, attribute the bombings to both Russia and the regime, a tweet from @abuhuzaifa_ blamed Russia in contrast to Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, who identified the regime as being responsible.

Just after the massacre, a convoy of Turkish military vehicles passed near the site, a video posted by @syriapostnew1 shows.

The incident occured in the morning.

Summary

  • Strike status
    Contested strike
  • Strike type
    Artillery
  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    7
  • (3–4 children1 woman2 men)
  • Civilians reported injured
    7
  • Cause of injury / death
    Heavy weapons and explosive munitions
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Contested
    Competing claims of responsibility e.g. multiple belligerents, or casualties also attributed to ground forces.
  • Suspected attackers
    Syrian Regime, Russian Military

Sources (42) [ collapse]

Media
from sources (24) [ collapse]

  • Victims trapped under the rubble following strikes on the town of Iblin on July 22, 2021. (Image posted by Macro Media Center)
  • This media contains graphic content. Click to unblur.

    One of the victims is trapped in the rubble as Civil Defense crews try to rescue them following the bombing of Iblin on July 22, 2021. (Image posted by Syrian Civil Defense)
  • Rescue crews search for victims trapped under the rubble following strikes on the town of Iblin on July 22, 2021. (Image posted by Macro Media Center)
  • This media contains graphic content. Click to unblur.

    There is no sound above the cries of pain and separation, in a place where hardly a day goes by without blood. In Jabal Al-Zawiya...Eid is different
  • This media contains graphic content. Click to unblur.

    Words can no longer describe the scene... They all died. Here is Jabal Al-Zawiya, Ibelin, Idlib countryside
  • Rescue crews search for victims trapped under the rubble following strikes on the town of Iblin on July 22, 2021. (Image posted by Syrian Civil Defense)
  • Victims of the bombing of Iblin on July 22, 2021. (Image posted by Syrian Network for Human Rights)
  • Destruction caused by the bombing of Iblin on July 22, 2021. (Image posted by @Blal_Haj_Ahmad)
  • Mourning the victims of the bombing of Iblin on July 22, 2021. (Image posted by @hamzasyriafree)
  • Destruction caused by the bombing of Iblin on July 22, 2021. (Image posted by @hamzasyriafree)
  • Victims of the bombing of Iblin on July 22, 2021. (Image posted by @hamzasyriafree)
  • Victims of the bombing of Iblin on July 22, 2021. (Image posted by @hamzasyriafree)
  • Smoke caused by the bombing of Iblin on July 22, 2021. (Image posted by @Reemjihad1)
  • Victims of the bombing of Iblin on July 22, 2021. (Image posted by @Reemjihad1)
  • This media contains graphic content. Click to unblur.

    Graphic image of one of the victims of the the bombing of Iblin on July 22, 2021. (Image posted by @ibrahim78197182)
  • Destruction caused by the bombing of Iblin on July 22, 2021. (Image posted by @HalabTodayTV)
  • Destruction caused by the bombing of Iblin on July 22, 2021. (Image posted by @HalabTodayTV)
  • Personal items belonging to the family whose home was destroyed in the bombing of Iblin on July 22, 2021. (Image posted by @HalabTodayTV)
  • This media contains graphic content. Click to unblur.

  • One of the victims of the bombing of Iblin on July 22, 2021. (Image posted by Wael Harmoush via Facebook)

Geolocation notes

Reports of the incident mention the town of Iblin (إبلين), for which the generic coordinates are: 35.716665, 36.499157. Due to limited satellite imagery and information available to Airwars, we were unable to verify the location further.

Syrian Regime Assessment:

  • Suspected belligerent
    Syrian Regime
  • Syrian Regime position on incident
    Not yet assessed

Russian Military Assessment:

  • Suspected belligerent
    Russian Military
  • Russian Military position on incident
    Not yet assessed

Summary

  • Strike status
    Contested strike
  • Strike type
    Artillery
  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    7
  • (3–4 children1 woman2 men)
  • Civilians reported injured
    7
  • Cause of injury / death
    Heavy weapons and explosive munitions
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Contested
    Competing claims of responsibility e.g. multiple belligerents, or casualties also attributed to ground forces.
  • Suspected attackers
    Syrian Regime, Russian Military

Sources (42) [ collapse]