Syria: Airstrike on factory kills dozens of civilians
July 13, 2018
An airstrike in an area of eastern Syria controlled by the Islamic State has killed at least 28 civilians who were sheltering in an ice factory. Syrian state media blamed the US-led coalition for carrying out the strike.
Syrian state media has blamed the attacks on the US-led coalition that is combatting ISImage: picture alliance/dpa/US Air Force/M. Bruch
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Dozens of civilians were killed and wounded in an overnight airstrike in the eastern Syrian province of Deir Ezzor, a monitor and Syrian state media said on Friday.
The area is one of the last holdouts of the militant "Islamic State" (IS) group.
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the strike hit an ice factory at a village near the Iraqi border on Thursday night, killing at least 54 people, including 28 civilians and 26 IS fighters. According to the monitor, dozens of families were using the factory as a shelter.
It was not immediately clear who carried out the strike. Syria's state news agency SANA reported that over 30 civilians were killed and dozens more were wounded. It said the US-led coalition was behind the attack.
A spokesman for the coalition, Colonel Sean Ryan, told Reuters that it or "partner forces may have conducted strikes in the vicinity," adding that the coalition would assess the report alleging civilian casualties.
Iraqi warplanes as well as those belonging to the US-led coalition have carried out airstrikes against IS in the area in the past.
IS continues to control small pockets of territory in eastern Syria.
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Syrian government raises flag in Daraa
The Syrian government raised its flag in the southern city of Daraa on Thursday, in the cradle of the 2011 revolt against President Bashar Assad.
The national flag was raised as the Syrian army moved into rebel-held parts of the city, which was the first city to hold demonstrations demanding reforms and then Assad's ouster.
The move was highly symbolic, as Assad's government continues its push to remove rebels from the key southern Daraa province, which borders Jordan and the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.
The Syrian government, which is supported by Russia, now controls 80 percent of Daraa province, while opposition forces still retain control of areas in the west.
Government forces secured the capital city of Damascus in May this year.
The conflict in Syria has killed an estimated 400,000 people and displaced millions of others.
rs/rc (AP, AFP)
Syria: Assad takes border crossing as rebels agree to deal
Syrian troops have recaptured a vital border crossing with Jordan after launching a devastating offensive in the south. Rebels in the area have "struck a deal" with Russia to lay down their arms. The story in pictures.
Image: Getty Images/Y.Karawashan
Sustained bombardment
Syrian regime troops, backed by allies Russia and Iran, stepped up attacks on Daraa province in the country's south this week after the rebels rejected the terms of an earlier ceasefire offer.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/Nabaa Media
Campaign in Daraa
In the wake of a massive Russian-backed air and ground offensive, which has been ongoing since mid-June, government soldiers have been able to recapture large parts of Daara. The violence has driven hundreds of thousands of civilians from their homes.
Image: picture-alliance/AP
The human cost
The offensive prompted more than 330,000 residents to flee towards the sealed borders of Israel and Jordan. Many were forced to camp in open spaces or makeshift shelters.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/Nabaa Media
'Wave of displacement'
According to the United Nations children's agency, UNICEF, it was the "largest wave of displacement to hit southern Syria since the start of the seven-year-long war." The agency said more than 60 children had been killed in the past three weeks in southern Syria alone.
Image: picture-alliance/AA/A. A. Ali
Crucial crossing
Regime troops reached the main border crossing with Jordan on Friday and raised the Syrian flag, state media said. Naseeb border came under rebel control in 2015, disrupting a major trade route between Syria, Jordan, Lebanon and oil-rich gulf countries. Its recapture potentially means Syria can resume exports to Arab nations; in that sense it marks a significant victory for President Bashar Assad.
Image: picture-alliance/Photoshot/M.A. Ghosh
Ceasefire deal
State news agency SANA said the capture of the crossing happened after a deal was reached between rebels and Russian mediators to end fighting in southern Syria. Ibrahim Jabawi, spokesman for the rebels' joint operations room, said the insurgents agreed to handover their weapons in return for a government pullout from several villages. It's not clear when the reported deal goes into effect.
