Barrel bombs hit Syrian refugee camp, say residents

The Assad regime in Syria has been accused of dropping barrel bombs on a displaced persons camp in the northern province of Idlib, killing dozens of people.

The US said it was “horrified” by the reports of the bombing while adding it could not confirm details. “The attack on the Abedin camp was nothing short of barbaric,” said state department spokeswoman Jen Psaki. “Unfortunately if it is confirmed to be the work of the [Assad] regime it is only the latest act of brutality by the regime against its own people.“

Camp residents told the Reuters news agency that the attack took place on Wednesday with two barrel bombs dropped from an army helicopter. Video footage appeared online showing charred and dismembered bodies. A man in one video describes the victims as displaced civilians, while another says as many as 75 people died.

Syrian state media did not mention the bombing. The British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which tracks violence in the civil war, said 10 civilians died.

Reuters could not independently confirm the attack. Barrel bombs are crudely made containers filled with nails, metal shrapnel and explosive material that are dropped from helicopters.

Rights groups say they have been dropped by the army on densely populated neighbourhoods in defiance of a UN security council resolution banning the indiscriminate explosives.

Nearly 10 million people have been displaced by Syria’s civil war, which started with pro-democracy protests but grew into an armed revolt when security forces cracked down on the demonstrations. More than three million refugees have fled the country and the conflict has killed close to 200,000 people, according to the United Nations.

Both the Syrian government and insurgent groups are accused by rights groups of killing civilians and destroying homes.

 

 

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/oct/30/barrel-bombs-hit-syrian-refugee-camp