Damascus Center for Human Rights Studies (DCHRS)

Report about the massacre of Al-Qubeir Farm, Hama Province

Report Date: 09/06/2012

Report about the massacre of Al-Qubeir Farm, Hama Province submitted to the The Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Syria

  • Location: Al-Qubeir Farm is located 20 KM west of Hama city and 2 KM south of Marzaf Village.
  • Al-Qubeir Farm is a small community consisting of 25 houses, and its population is about 150 people approximately
  • Date of incident : 06/06/2012
  • The witnesses:
  • Ahmad Al-Yateam  (one of the survivors) age:45
  • Fedda Al-Yateam (Survivor-Ahmad Al-Yateam’s sister ) age: in her forties of age.

Phone number: 00963932689450

  • The Witness’s code (12001) : From Marzaf village
  • The Witness’s code (12002) from Marzaf village

Reporting of the incident:
After we conducted some interviews with several witnesses the findings were as follow:
On Wednesday June 6th 2012 in bout 12:30 pm an armed group consisting of 6 personals who were wearing plainclothes and who carried Kalashnikovs weapons had attacked a checkpoint that belongs to the Syrian army in order to save a person who was arrested earlier the same day and detained by the previously mentioned checkpoint, during the combat, a reinforcement from the Syrian army had been sent, it was composed of 3 tanks T72 type, some military armoured vehicles, and some military trucks Zell type (Russian made), these full- armed reinforcement had besieged the attacking group and clashed with them which led to kill the entire six-composed group and their names were: (Mohammad Hassan Elwan- Hama- Greggis village. 2- Mahdi Ahmad Elwan Hama-Greggis village. 3-Sari Ali Al-Hamdou- Hama-Greggis village. 4- Emad Ismail Elwan-Hama-Greggis village. Mohammad Saleh Elwan-Hama-Greggis village. 6-Salah Jameel Elwan )

Afterwards the tanks headed towards Al-Qubeir village along with the Zell trucks, six white buses , oil color armoured vehicles written on one of it “Riot Control” , and other  pick-up trucks which were carrying forces wearing an the Syrian Armed Forces uniform; these forces had personal weapons, The most of the weapons were Kalashnikovs  and BKC machine guns.

The witnesses said that there were other civilian vehicles –2 pick-up Hyundai white tucks, other pick-up trucks, and small trucks (the natives call them Torteera or Torzena), these vehicles had civilians who accompanied the military forces and they were wearing plainclothes and carried small weapons such as: sticks, knives, and daggers and others carried pistols and Kalashnikovs

Between 1:40 and 1:50 the previously mentioned armed forces had besieged the village from three axis (The Northern Axis: Mezrav village direction, the Eastern axis : Al-Majdal direction, and the western axis : Al-Taweem village direction).

Once the Forces has taken positions, 4 shells were launched directly on the houses without any earlier warning, then, the heavy and medium guns were used to fire on the houses as well, and after about 10 minutes the tanks has stormed into the village along the security forces, who were wearing the alternative uniform that belongs to the Syrian Armed Forces, and the civilians who wore plainclothes and accompanied the forces, they began shooting heavily, the sound of gun fire lasted Intermittently inside the village for about one hour and a half, given that the forces remained in the village until 7:30 PM.

According to the survivor’s  report (Feda Al-Yateam – Female), the forces would get the people out of their houses and would shoot them directly, she added that the forces wearing the plainclothes who carried sticks took her husband along with other civilians from the village, made them lay down on the ground  and started beating them with sticks on their heads repeatedly until they felt that they had killed all of them, after that they burned the bodies, another witness with the code: (12001) said that after the army retrieved from the village, the witness entered the village to look after any survivors, he reported seeing a woman that was shot in the chest, and her right hand were cut off from the wrist, and next to her there was a baby’s body that was stabbed in his chest by a sharp tool that caused his viscera out his body in front of a house.

He also added that he saw in front of another house three children’s body behind a woman body, all those bodies were in a sitting position which implied that the woman was trying to protect them when they got shot directly, which resulted in getting them injured in different places.

Another survivor (Ahmad Al-Yateam – Male) said that he was hit by a stick on his head and his body with sticks and shotguns’ backs repeatedly by individuals wearing the military uniform, and others with plainclothes until he became unconscious.

In addition, there was another witness; with the code(12002) said that before the military forces had withdrawn from the village,  there were 6 ambulances took some bodies, the witness said that the number of bodies taken were between 25-30, then the ambulances had withdrawn along the military forces.

The witness with the code (12001) also said that a bold green armoured vehicle, that belong to the Syrian Armed Forces, had attached two bodies with a rope and dragged on the ground while heading west to a place known locally as Aseela Road.

While the survivors and the locals claimed that there were over 100 people who were killed in this massacre, we managed to document 54 victim name in addition to the 6 individuals group who were killed during the clashes that took place at the checkpoint, the reason only 54 were documented is because either the bodies of some of the victims were completely disfigured or deformed to the point that the locals couldn’t recognize it, or due to the incapacity to find the other missing bodies. In addition to that, the government and the military forces refused to reveal their fate, or to conduct a real and honest investigation. Furthermore; the government and the security forces refused to let the international observers, who were in Hama city, to enter into the area, they were stopped the next morning 07-06-2012 at one of the checkpoints that surrounding the area where the massacre took place, then they were prevented to head into the village and they were asked to get back to Hama city, so the monitors weren’t able to enter into the village until 08-06-2012

Names of the documented victims:

  • Ibrahim Al-Yateam /kid/ 4 years/ Hama-Al-Qubier/.
  • Ibrahim Al-Yateam /kid/ 9 years/ Hama-Al-Qubier/.
  • Ahmad Ali Al-Yateam / kid / 5 years / Hama-Al-Qubier/.
  • Ayman Ahmad Al-Yateam / kid / baby / Hama-Al-Qubier/.
  • Jasim Al-Yateam / Hama-Al-Qubier/.
  • Khalid Hussein Al-Yateam / Hama-Al-Qubier/.
  • Ali Hussein Al-Yateam / Hama-Al-Qubier/.
  • Fares Hussein Al-Yateam Hama-Al-Qubier/.
  • Mohammad Hussein Al-Yateam / Hama-Al-Qubier/.
  • Hussein Al-Yateam / Hama-Al-Qubier/.
  • Hamza Ahmad Al-Yateam / one year / baby / Hama-Al-Qubier/.
  • Ayman Hamoud Al-Yateam / Hama-Al-Qubier/.
  • Mohammd Hamoud Al-Yateam / Hama-Al-Qubier/.
  • Hamoud Qastal Al-Yateam / 68 year / Hama-Al-Qubier/.
  • Hameeda Al-Abdullah / Hama-Al-Qubier/.
  • Rasheed Al-Yateam Hama-Al-Qubier/. Not to be confused with Rasheed Khero Al-Yateam.
  • Ryad Al-Yateam / Hama-Al-Qubier/.
  • Ezzo Ahmad Al-Yateam / Hama-Al-Qubier/.
  • Ali Ahmad Al-Yateam / kid / 9 years / Hama-Al-Qubier/.
  • Khero Ahmad Al-Yateam / Hama-Al-Qubier/.
  • Rasheed Khero Al-Yateam / Hama-Al-Qubier/.
  • Ali Khero Al-Yateam / Hama-Al-Qubier/.
  • Mohammad Khero Al-Yateam / Hama-Al-Qubier/.
  • Omar Ahmad Al-Yateam / kid / 3 years / Hama-Al-Qubier/.
  • Ouad Ahmad Al-Yateam / woman / Hama-Al-Qubier/.
  • Awka Ahmad Al-Yateam / Hama-Al-Qubier/.
  • Fateam Ahmad Al-Yateam / woman / Hama-Al-Qubier/.
  • Faisal Al-Yateam / Hama-Al-Qubier/.
  • Mohammad Ahmad Al-Yateam / kid / 9 years / Hama-Al-Qubier/.
  • Mohammad Ahmad Al-Yateam / baby / 2 years / Hama-Al-Qubier/.
  • Mohammad Al-Yateam / Hama-Al-Qubier/.
  • Mohammad Rashid Al-Yateam / Hama-Al-Qubier/.
  • Mohammad Shihada Al-Yateam / Hama-Al-Qubier/.
  • Mohammad Elwan / Hama-Al-Qubier/.
  • Mariam Ahmad Al-Yateam / woman /  Hama-Al-Qubier/.
  • Mansour Al-Yateam / Hama-Al-Qubier/.
  • Manfia  Steif / woman / Hama-Al-Qubier/.
  • Mouna Al-Yateam / woman / Hama-Al-Qubier/.
  • Noufal Al-Yateam / Hama-Al-Qubier/.
  • Roz Al-Yateam / lady / Hama-Al-Qubier/.
  • Saloum Hassan Al-Yateam / Hama-Al-Qubier/.
  • Samra Al-Yateam / lady / Hama-Al-Qubier/.
  • Sabria Al-Yateam / lady / Hama-Al-Qubier/.
  • Abdullah Al-Yateam / Hama-Al-Qubier/.
  • Khalid Al-Yateam / Hama-Al-Qubier/.
  • Nofa Al-Yateam / lady / Hama-Al-Qubier/.
  • Hussein Al-Fares / Hama-Al-Qubier/.
  • Khalid Al-Fares / Hama-Al-Qubier/.
  • Faisal Al-Fares / Hama-Al-Qubier/. One of the martyrs in Al-Qubeir massacre
  • Mansour Al-Fares // Hama-Al-Qubier/. One of the martyrs  in Al-Qubeir massacre

 

Attachments:
Video footage for the kid’s victim in the massacre
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_qaVdM8Ot-o
Video footage for the massacre victims at Marzaf  town
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0y77I_lTfwc
The UN video footage for The UN observers visiting the village
http://youtu.be/usUdPauqMNQ

Report Date: 09/06/2012