Geolocation
Airwars assessment
Between 18 and 20 civilians including seven women and six children were killed and 14 others injured in alleged Russian airstrikes on Al Hissan, according to local sources.
The Syrian Network for Human Rights initially reported that a “massacre” by “suspected Russian warplanes” killed 18 non-combatants, including six women and seven children, but a subsequent report put the death toll at 20.
The Shaam News Network also reported on “a new massacre against civilians” in Al Hissan, saying that 15 died with dozens more wounded, but they did not say who the warplanes belonged to.
However, they noted that “Russian and regime aircraft haven’t left the skies of Deir Ezzor ever since IS started attacking areas controlled by Assad’s forces like Al Baghiliya, Ayyash and Brigade 137, and committed dozens of massacres in several villages and towns.”
Deir Ezzor is Being Slaughtered Silently published a number of reports naming victims killed in an alleged Russian strike, and noted that among those killed were members of the al-Abdoun family. They put the death toll at nine, including four women.
The local time of the incident is unknown.
The victims were named as:
Family members (9)
The victims were named as:
Geolocation notes
Reports of the incident mention the village of Al Hissan (الحصان), for which the generic coordinates are: 35.4008045, 40.1184654. Due to limited satellite imagery and information available to Airwars, we were unable to verify the location further.
Summary
Sources (23) [ collapse]
Russian Military Assessment:
Original strike reports
In its military report published on 1st February 2016, the Kremlin said: “In the course of the last week, the Russian aircraft in the Syrian Arab Republic have performed 468 combat sorties engaging 1354 terrorists’ infrastructural facilities in the Aleppo, Latakia, Hama, Homs, Damascus, Raqqah, Daraa and Deir ez-Zor provinces. Among them – 24 ones were carried out by Tu-22M3 long-range bombers from the Russian territory…Long-range bomber aviation aircraft supported units of the Syrian governmental troops which defended the city of Deir ez-Zor. The airstrikes carried out by Tu-22M3 bombers from the territory of the Russian Federation jointly with tactical aviation from the Hmeymim airbase, engaged 23 important terrorists’ objects in that district. The attempt of terrorists to assault Deir ez-Zor was frustrated.“