Civilian Casualties

Civilian Casualties

Incident Code

RS3735

Incident date

May 29, 2019

Location

البارة, Al Bara, Idlib, Syria

Airwars assessment

A man and his two young children were killed in alleged Russian or Syrian regime airstrikes on Al Bara town in the Jabal al Zaweya area in Idlib on May 29th, according to local sources. The wife of the victim died of her injuries sustained in the attack on June 2nd.

The Syrian Network for Human Rights wrote that “the sibling children Aya and Adam Marwan Al Yahya were killed along with their father as Syrian regime forces helicopters dropped barrel bombs on Al Bara village in Jabal al Zawiya area in Idlib governorate southern suburbs, on May 29.”

The Syrian Human Rights Committee also identified the victims as Marwan Al Yahya and his daughter Aya Marwan Al Yahya and son Adam Marwan Al Yahya. Bilal Lata, however, reported that the child Adam Al Yahya “remained after his parents, his brother Mustafa and his sister Aya were martyred”. Hence, remains unclear if the second killed child was Adam or Mustafa Al Yahya. Step News, however, reported that a father and three children were killed.

On June 2nd, the Facebook page Men’s from Al Bara reported that Marwan Al Yahya’s wife Ghofran Al Qirbi had passed away of her injuries sustained in the strikes. The Syrian Human Rights Committee and @DeryNews also reported the death of the woman.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights stated that other members of the family were wounded. Halab Today reported the injury of an unknown number of civilians. According to Syrian Mosaic, two civilian houses were completely destroyed. According to the Syrian Civil Defence, in addition to three fatalities, two others were injured when civilians and a school were targeted with explosive barrels by helicopter raids at dawn.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that the incident occurred after midnight, while HalabTodayTV put the time of the incident around dawn.

Sources blamed both Russia and the Syrian regime for the airstrikes.

The incident occured between 1:00 am and 7:00 am local time.

The victims were named as:

Ghofran Al Qirbi غفران القربي
Adult female wife of Marwan Hussein Al Yahya, died of her injuries killed

Summary

  • Strike status
    Contested strike
  • Civilian infrastructure
    School
  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    4 – 5
  • (2–3 children1 woman1 man)
  • Civilians reported injured
    2
  • 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 belligerents
    Syrian Regime, Russian Military
  • Suspected target
    Unknown

Sources (26) [ collapse]

Media
from sources (14) [ collapse]

  • This media contains graphic content. Click to unblur.

    Bodies of a father and his two children who were killed in an alleged Syrian-regime airstrike on Al Bara village in Jabal al Zaweya area in Idlib on May 29th (via Syrian Network for Human Righs).
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    Translation: “Moments ago in Al Bara” (via @ShamBerkdar).
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    Children killed in alleged Russian or Syrian regime airstrikes on Al Bara, May 29th (via @ShamBerkdar).
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    Translation: “Harsh scenes of a child being pulled out after the Assad helicopters bombed the town of Al Bara shortly before” (via @abdalazezketaz).
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    Translation: “In Al Bara village in Idlib city children have been killed by Russian and Assad warplanes” (via @alshamiobada).
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    Translation: “Three civilians from one family, a man and his two children, ascended and 2 others were wounded, as a result of targeting the center of a town of Al Bara with barrel bombs dropped by helicopters at dawn today, targeting civilian homes and a school” (via @SyriaCiviDefe).
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  • This media contains graphic content. Click to unblur.

    Two children were killed alongside their father in alleged Russian or Syrian regime airstrikes on Al Bara, May 29th (via @mohamed1aldaher).
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    Translation: “These pictures were taken in the town of Al Bara in the countryside of Idlib a short while ago, after criminal warplanes dropped their barrels on these children while they were sleeping” (via @abdalwhab761).
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    The body of a child who was killed in alleged Russian or Syrian regime airstrikes on Al Bara, May 29th (via @abdalwhab761).
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    The body of a child who was killed in alleged Russian or Syrian regime airstrikes on Al Bara, May 29th (via @abdalwhab761).
  • Translation: “The effects of destruction in Al Bara village in Idlib countryside, due to the regime’s shelling” (via JisrTV).
  • Translation: “With great sadness and sorrow, we received the news of the martyrdom of our cousin, Marwan Hussein Al Yahya, and his children” (via Mohammed Al Kadour).
  • Marwan Hussein Al Yahya was killed alongside his children in alleged Russian or Syrian regime airstrikes on Al Bara on May 19th (via Ali Al Badi’a).

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
  • Civilian infrastructure
    School
  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    4 – 5
  • (2–3 children1 woman1 man)
  • Civilians reported injured
    2
  • 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 belligerents
    Syrian Regime, Russian Military
  • Suspected target
    Unknown

Sources (26) [ collapse]