The “Bombardment of the Vegetables Market” Massacre as an Example
I. Introduction
Idlib city has been under the joint control of armed opposition factions and Fateh Al Sham Front since 28 March 2015. Idlib city is populated by no less than 170,000 people.
On 24 September 2015, the city was subject to a truce that was made mainly by Ahrar Al Sham faction, one of the factions that compose Jaish Al Fateh, and the Syrian regime which provided for a full cease of military operations and aerial bombardment in Idlib city and some of the affiliated villages in return of some demands including the passage of aids to Al Fou’a and Kafrya villages which are of a Shiite majority that supports the Syrian regime. This truce was breached multiple times by the Syrian regime and its allies where we highlighted the most notable breaches, which manifested in a number of massacres, in a past report entitled: “Russian Forces Breach UN Security Council Resolution 2254 and Kills Idlib Residents”.
On 11 June 2016, the two sides agreed to extend the truce. However, exactly on the next day, 12 June, the Syrian regime aerial forces bombed the vegetables market in the city which resulted in a horrific massacre which this report documents. This massacre was an explicit indication that the current regime doesn’t respect even the truces that it makes let alone agreements enforced upon it.
SNHR contacted a number of the city residents, eyewitnesses, survivors, and local media activists where this report includes three accounts. We have explained the purpose of these interviews for the witnesses and they gave us permission to use the provided information in this report.
Also, we have reviewed the pictures and incidents we received and verified its authenticity, these pictures and videos show the huge destruction that resulted from the bombardment and the many shops and vehicles that was burned in the bombardment. We have copies of all the videos and pictures mentioned in this report.
The investigations included in this report have proven that the targeted areas are civil areas where there is no military centers or weapon warehouses for armed opposition factions of extremist Islamic groups before or during the attack.
This report only represents the bare minimum of the actual magnitude and severity of the violation that occurred. Additionally, the report doesn’t cover the social, economic, and psychological ramifications.
