Date of incident: 11/8/2012, Location of incident: , The southern district of Alshammas in Homs that falls near the Wadi Althahab district which is known to be controlled by regime loyalists and Shabiha gangs.
The Alshammas district has a minimum population of 10,000 people. The population of the district increased as many residents from other districts, such as Baba Amr, sought refuge from shelling and invasions.
1200 families were recorded as needy families in the Alshammas district. 550 of the families are from the district and 650 fled to it from other areas.
The district lies in the middle of other districts that are known to be controlled by regime loyalists. The residents of Alshammas halted their demonstrations after the Syrian army gathered in huge numbers near the district. Halting the rallies prevented the army from having a pretext for storming the district and committing massacres.
All this precaution did not prevent the Shabiha from striking fear into the hearts of the people of Alshammas, especially after a previous massacre in which 15 people were killed.
On 8/10/2012, the eve of the massacre, the armed groups from the Wadi Althahab district were sent to surround Alshammas before invading it again. They invaded the district on 11/8/2012 and detained many of the young men from Alshammas. The detained were taken to mosques where they were tortured with electric cables and hammers. Some of them were extrajudicially executed.
This information can be verified by contacting this witness through Skype:
Soshoms
The invasion was also accompanied by snipers who were spread around in different towers. The invasion caused the death of 22 people including 7 children and 3 women.
A video documentation of some of the victims (including a child):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zb8IiqGbxQQ
We were able to acquire the names of the victims after accurately collecting information from relatives of victims and witnesses.
- Basil Khalil
- Mohammed Qasim Alhasiki
- Nader Alizzo
- Yasin Faisal Zaqrit
- Mahmoud Alkurdi
- Firas Alkurdi
- Abdulrahman Bisam Zaqrit (child)
- Ibrahim Alantour
- Alaadin Jamal Alhazouri
- Hanan Mohammed Alhazouri
- Hiyam Shahoud
- Ammar Alizzo- 10 years old
- Ayah Alizzo- 7 years old
- Maha Alshami- 16 years old
- Maha Alshami’s brother
- Ranya Alshami’s son (child)
- Ranya Alshami’s son (child)
- Khalid Alhalabi
- Nadya Alhamwi
- Kamal Hazim Kahlil
- Ramiz Ammar Alhamwi (cihld)
- Sulaiman Alraa’i
We, in the Syrian Network for Human Rights, blatantly condemn this horrific massacre and all the massacres that preceded it. All these crimes, which the Syrian people are being subject to hourly, are categorized as violations of human rights. We hold the Syrian government and army, which are both lead by Bashar Alassad, fully responsible for these crimes. We also demand that the Security Council and the UN take swift action and make decisions in order to protect the civilians in Syria. We call upon the UN and the Security Council to live up to their claimed moral and legal responsibilities and to work towards bringing those responsible for crimes in Syria to the International Criminal Court.
Syrian Network for Human Rights – London
Website: www.syrianhr.org
Email: press@syrianhr.org
Skype: Syrianhr