Incident Code

RS4532

Location

سرجة, Sarja, Idlib, Syria

Geolocation

35.5816284, 36.9212293
Accuracy: Village

Airwars Assessment

Last Updated: December 15, 2024

(Previous Incident Code: R4293)

One civilian, a man, was reported killed and one civilian sustained injuries as the result of an alleged Russian and/or Regime strike on the village of Sarja in the southern countryside of Idlib on Tuesday, November 17, 2020.

Regarding civilian harm, the Syrian Network for Human Rights (SNHR) reported that “A 30-year-old Syrian citizen, named as Munif Ahmad Naddaf, died when the roof of his home in Sarja village in the southern suburbs of Idlib governorate collapsed on November 17, 2020.” SNHR quoted local activist according to whom “the roof had been severely damaged by intensive bombardment of the village by Syrian-Russian Alliance forces in previous military campaigns, including the dropping of barrel bombs weighing between 50 and 1,000 kilograms.”

The Syrian Civil Defence and Thiqa News agency provided that a civilian was killed an another civilian sustained injuries when a cracked roof, resulting from previous Regime bombing, collapsed on Tuesaday evening, November 17. According to the SCD, this was the second incident that day in which a civilian died because a destabilized roof collapsed.

Sources were conflicted as to who was responsible for the strike, with @dbOFRYEU7XqMrTc attributing the strike to the russian Armed Forces while @Khaled_Sheikh1 and @thiqanewsagency referred to the Regime as having carried out the attack on Sarja that caused the roof to collapse. The SNHRnamed both forces as responsible for the strike.

The incident allegedly took place in the evening.

Victims

Invidivuals

30 years old male killed

Key Information

Country
Military Actor
Strike Type
Airstrike and/or Artillery
Strike Status
Contested strike
Civilian Harm Reported
Yes
Civilian Harm Status
Contested
Competing claims of responsibility e.g. multiple belligerents, or casualties also attributed to ground forces.
Causes of Death / Injury
Accidents related to conflict
Civilians reported killed
1
1 Man
Civilians reported injured
1

Geolocation Notes

Reports of the incident mention the village of Sarja (سرجة), for which the generic coordinates are: 35.5816284, 36.9212293. Due to limited satellite imagery and information available to Airwars, we were unable to verify the location further.

Military Statements

Russian Military Assessment
Suspected belligerent
Russian Military
Russian Military position on incident
Not yet assessed
Syrian Regime Assessment
Suspected belligerent
Syrian Regime
Syrian Regime position on incident
Not yet assessed

Media From Sources (1)