The Syrian regime adopted a relentless war against the Syrian people by targeting civil areas, condensed neighborhoods, places of worship, field hospitals, and bakeries. Furthermore, the Syrian regime targeted many medical points that were established to treat the Syrian children, women, and elderlies. Field hospitals were built in areas which were besieged to help the residents, who become wounded due to airstrikes, shelling, and bombing.
On August 31st, 2014 at 1:20 PM, Dael city, which’s located in western Daraa suburbs, was struck by Syrian regime airplanes using barrel bombs. One of the barrel bombs, which weighted about half ton, was dropped on the only operating field hospital called “Nabid Houran” in Dael, Daraa. The barrel bomb caused major damages and ruins in the infrastructure of the hospital. For instance the following units were destroyed: the pharmacy, prematurity and infant care unit, operating rooms, emergency unit, radiology unit, and physical therapy unit. Not to mention that most of the medical machines and equipment were completely damaged.
Moreover, the shelling caused several injuries among the medical team and the civilians who were at the hospital at that time. “Nabid Houran” medical team (the targeted field-hospital) announced in a statement that the hospital had become out of order due to the damages and destructions. Additionally the staff declared their inability to admit or treat any children, women, or wounded.
Targeting Medical facilities is not the first of its kind. On 14 April, 2014, the Syrian regime dropped a 500 KG barrel bomb on the only medical center operating in Al-Kahil town, located in Daraa suburbs, which killed four people; a nurse, a lady, her son, and a young man. The shelling also caused tens of injuries which were mostly women and children.
DCHRS urges the Security Council and the international community to adopt a resolution that would end targeting field hospitals and medical facilities. Additionally, the UN should take an urgent action in order to hold Bashar Al-Assad and his regime accountable for the crimes against humanities that were perpetrated against the innocent civilians of Syria.
Damascus Center for Human Rights Studies
31/08/2014
For more information, please contact
Dr. Radwan Ziadeh, Executive director of the Damascus Center for Human Rights Studies.
Phone (571) 205-3590
Email : radwan.ziadeh@gmail.com
Mr. Mojahed Ghadban, Communication Officer.
Telephone (479) 799-8115
Email: info@dchrs.org
DCHRS is an independent, non-governmental organization, established in 2005, located in the Syrian capital of Damascus. Its mission is to foster a spirit of support and respect for the values and standards of human rights in Syria. As such, DCHRS recognizes and adheres to all pertinent international human rights agreements and declarations issued by the UN.
DCHRS is a member of the following international networks:
- International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH)
- Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Network (EMHRN)
- NGO Coalition for the international Criminal Court
- International Coalition for the Responsibility to Protect (ICRtoP)
- International Coalition of Sites of Conscience (ICSC)
DCHRS worked on a variety of documentation projects. Such projects included daily casualty reports, massacre reports, and other human rights violations reports. Also DCHRS has been working on advocacy and lobbying in different human rights institutions in order to educate and acknowledge about the deteriorating human rights situation in Syria.. After the launch of the Syrian revolution, the center increased its activities through working, communicating, and coordinating with many members and activists. Thus the center began documenting daily violations committed by the Syrian regime forces that can be classified as crimes against humanities and war crimes. Such violations included: extrajudicial killings, massacres, arbitrary detentions, enforced disappearances, rape, torture in prisons. DCHRS opened local offices in Syria in order to document, collect, and observe human rights violations on the ground. DCHRS submitted those reports to many international and regional human rights organizations and communicated with the Report of the independent international commission of inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic on Syria.