Civilian Casualties

Civilian Casualties

Incident Code

RS794

Incident date

May 10, 2016

Location

بنش, Binnish, Idlib, Syria

Geolocation

35.958429, 36.711587 Note: The accuracy of this location is to Town level. Continue to map

Airwars assessment

Between 10 and 14 civilians including two to three children and one woman died in an airstrike on Binnish which struck a mosque, a market and houses, according to multiple local sources. The majority of reports point to this being the work of the Assad regime, though  others, like LCCSY, alleged that Russia was responsible. Some sources did not identify the planes that carried out the attack.

Step News posted a video saying that a warplane raid in a market in Binnish led to a massacre. An initial report by the Shaam News Network blamed the regime, saying that the town of Binnish – next to Al Faw’a – was one of the locations supposedly covered by a cessation of fighting under the  “Al Faw’a – Al Zabadanii” agreement. It added that “Assad warplanes violated this agreement several times”.

Activists told SNN that the targeting of civilian homes killed 10 individuals and wounded 20 more. They named Abdul Ghaffar Harb, a military commander of Ahrar al-Sham (Al Qaeda) as a victim. A further report by the network said that activists had documented the death of an entire family when the Al Sheikh Sh’eib mosque was struck by warplanes. (This time it did not identify them.)

The victims were named as Muhannad Abdul Khaliq and his wife and two children. SNN added that a third child of the family – “no more than seven years old” – was in intensive care in a hospital on the Turkey border. Two raids were reported, one of which was on the mosque. They put the death toll at 12, and said that most of them were passers-by in front of the mosque. Several other sources also reported the death of two children, though in a tweet by Gnat it was said that three children from the same family were killed.

SNN also published a video showing the strike and aftermath, which they said had been carried out by “Sukhoi 24” warplanes. Other media organisations also posted footage:

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights did not identify the warplanes responsible, but said that at least 10 died, including two children “and a military commander of a battalion belonging to the Islamic Movement of Ahrar al-Sham“. It later posted a video on Twitter, showing the destruction caused. A video posted by Orient News showed what they said was a vacuum missile flying through the air and striking the mosque. It alleged that it was the work of the regime.

The Syrian Network for Human Rights also attributed the incident to the regime, and put the death toll at nine civilians. The White Helmets reported at least 10 non-combatants killed, but did not say who was responsible.

Two additional victims were named by the Violations Documentation Center. It blamed Russia.

 

The local time of the incident is unknown.

The victims were named as:

Family members (4)

Muhannad Abdul Khaliq
Adult male killed
Muhannad Abdul Khaliq's wife
Age unknown female killed
Muhannad Abdul Khaliq's child
Age unknown killed
Muhannad Abdul Khaliq's child
Age unknown killed

The victims were named as:

Age unknown male killed

Summary

  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    10 – 14
  • (2–3 children1 woman3 men)
  • Civilians reported injured
    12–25
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Contested
    Competing claims of responsibility e.g. multiple belligerents, or casualties also attributed to ground forces.
  • Suspected belligerents
    Russian Military, Syrian Regime

Sources (38) [ collapse]

Media
from sources (19) [ collapse]

  • Bodies are lined up following a strike on Banis, May 10th (via SNN)
  • Abdul Baset Abdul Salam Jabaq (via VDC)
  • This media contains graphic content. Click to unblur.

    Saad Mustafa Ameen Astaifi (via VDC)
  • Saad Mustafa Ameen Astaifi (via VDC)
  • Video shows the destruction caused by raids carried out by warplanes on areas on Bennesh city in Idlib province (via SOHR)
  • Ten martyrs and twenty wounded by air raids on the city of Bensh countryside Idlib (via SNN)
  • This media contains graphic content. Click to unblur.

    A civilian burned in warplane shelling in Binnish. (via 111_saleh)
  • This media contains graphic content. Click to unblur.

    Three children killed all from same family in suspected Russian warplane shelling in Binnish. (via Gnat)
  • This media contains graphic content. Click to unblur.

    Three children killed all from same family in suspected Russian warplane shelling in Binnish. (via Gnat)
  • This media contains graphic content. Click to unblur.

    Victims of the airstrike. (via SNN)
  • Victims of the airstrike. (via SNN)
  • Aftermath of the airstrike. (via SNN)
  • Aftermath of the airstrike. (via SNN)
  • victims died in government warplanes missiles fired on Binnish city in Idlib governorate, May 10. (via SNHR)
  • government warplanes (allies) fired missiles on Al Sheikh Shu’ayeb Mosque in Binnish city in Idlib governorate, causing a massacre, damaging the mosque severely, and rendering it inoperable, May 10. (via SNHR)
  • The civil defence in the southern Aleppo countryside helps the civil defence team in Idlib to pull out the martyrs resulting from the massacre at Binsh. (via White Helmets)
  • The civil defence in the southern Aleppo countryside helps the civil defence team in Idlib to pull out the martyrs resulting from the massacre at Binsh. (via White Helmets)
  • The civil defence in the southern Aleppo countryside helps the civil defence team in Idlib to pull out the martyrs resulting from the massacre at Binsh. (via White Helmets)
  • This media contains graphic content. Click to unblur.

    The civil defence in the southern Aleppo countryside helps the civil defence team in Idlib to pull out the martyrs resulting from the massacre at Binsh. (via White Helmets)

Russian Military Assessment:

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

Original strike reports

Russian Military

Russia has not reported any strikes between May 1st – 31st

Syrian Regime Assessment:

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

Summary

  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    10 – 14
  • (2–3 children1 woman3 men)
  • Civilians reported injured
    12–25
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Contested
    Competing claims of responsibility e.g. multiple belligerents, or casualties also attributed to ground forces.
  • Suspected belligerents
    Russian Military, Syrian Regime

Sources (38) [ collapse]