Airwars assessment
In a major civilian casualty event, up to 38 civilians including as many as 11 children died and dozens more were wounded when alleged Russian or Assad regime warplanes struck a major vegetable market in the town of Maarat al Numan. Sources said that the strike occurred at 2.45pm, when the market – which also sold “motorcycles, spare parts and car accessories” – was at its busiest.
Multiple sources published images depicting widespread destruction, which reportedly resulted in severe damage to as many as 40 shops.
Many sources blamed the Assad regime. According to the Smart News Agency, “25 civilians were killed and about 50 others were injured on Sunday night [Dec 4th] following an aerial bombardment of the vegetable market in the town of Ma’arat al-Nu’man, a southern suburb of Idlib. Aircraft of the regime launched a raid on the market, with rockets, killing and wounding about 75 civilians, including five children and three women in the initial death toll”.
Syrian Human Rights Committee, also pointing to the regime, put the death toll at 35 with dozens more injured. The Syrian Network for Human Rights, the White Helmets and Syrian Press Center also attributed the event to Assad.
However, Alarabita, Homs News24 and Zaitonmag said that Russia was responsible, as did the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, who reported that there were “38 civilians confirmed dead including five children and six persons from the same family including a woman”.
There was some confused reporting from the Step News Agency, who initially pointed to Russia but then to the regime.
Aljazeera and the Shaam News Network reported that both Russian and Syrian aircraft were the culprits.
The incident occured at 2:45 pm local time.
The victims were named as:
Family members (6)
- Ahmed Abdul Muti Harami male killed
- Hassan Abdul Muti Harami male killed
- Hussein Abdul Muti Harami male killed
- Hamza Yousef Al - Harami male killed
- Abdullah Mohammed Yousif Al Harami male killed
- Mariya Abdul Muti Harami female killed
- Ibrahim Shahoud al-Hip Age unknown female killed
- Ahmed Son of Khaled Al-Ahmar (from the village of Maarata) Age unknown male killed
- Ahmed Samer Siraqi Age unknown male killed
- Ismail Habbou Age unknown killed
- Amjad son of Omar Al Saeed Age unknown male killed
- Hamada Al-Dan Child killed
- Hamad Mohammed Fawaz Al Ibrahim Age unknown from Manat village killed
- Hamid Hammado Al - Bassa Age unknown killed
- Rawan Alden Child female displaced from Aleppo killed
- Samer Kushit Age unknown killed
- Ismail Yasser Qayat Age unknown male killed
- Abdullah Mahmoud Al-Karwan Child male killed
- Azzam Qaroucheh Age unknown killed
- Aziz Ibrahim Hamidi Age unknown killed
- Ali Mahmoud Khashan Age unknown killed
- Omar Taha Al Saeed Age unknown male killed
- Omar Nawaf Al Ibrahim Age unknown male from the village of Mantif killed
- Mohammed Abdul Hamid Al Ali Age unknown male killed
- Mohammed Abdul Hamid Al Ali Age unknown male killed
- Mohammed Katlaty Age unknown male killed
- Mohamed Nawaf Al Ibrahim Age unknown male from the village of Manatif killed
- Mahmoud Imad Makhzoum Age unknown male killed
- Mahmoud Mohamed Al-Mandil Age unknown male killed
- Mostafa Mohamed El Abd Age unknown male killed
- Muhannad Hamo Age unknown male killed
- Nayef Alzad Age unknown displaced from Tirean killed
- Issam Child killed
Summary
Sources (36) [ collapse]
Media
from sources (53) [ collapse]
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Russian Armed Forces Assessment:
Original strike reports
Russia has not reported any specific strikes between December 1st – 31st 2016.
On 6 January 2017, Russia, however, reported: “Since November 8, 2016, the aircraft carrier group of the Northern Fleet consisting of the heavy aircraft carrying cruiser Admiral Kuznetsov, the heavy nuclear missile cruiser Pyotr Velikiy, the large ASW ship Severomorsk, as well as auxiliary vessels of the Black Sea Fleet, has been fulfilling counterterrorist missions on the territory of Syria”, adding that ”in the course of two months of their participation in the combat actions, naval aviation pilots have carried out 420 combat sorties, 117 of them were night ones.”