For fear of Russian strikes under the pretext of “the play of the chemical strike”…more than 400 families displace from Jisr Al-Shughur city and its vicinity hours after the displacement of thousands of people in Idlib countryside
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitored that the number of casualties is continuing to increase along with the continued violations by the regime forces to the truce which has completed its 25th consecutive day, where the Syrian Observatory monitored clashes between the regime forces and gunmen loyal to them against the rebel and Islamic factions, in places in Khalsa area in the southern sector of Aleppo countryside, the SOHR also monitored shelling by the regime forces on areas in Al-Lataminah and Kafr Zita towns, as well as other areas in Jabal Shashabo in both Hama and Idlib countryside, accompanied by targeting by heavy machineguns and shells, to areas in Shari’aa, Zaytuneh and Al-Huwayz in Sahl Al-Ghab in the north-eastern countryside of Hama, which resulted in the fall of more human losses, raising to at least 9, the number of casualties who were killed today, they are 5 citizens including a child girl and a woman who were killed in the airstrikes on the vicinity of Abdeen village in the southern countryside of Idlib, a citizen who was killed in al-Halba area in the southeastern countryside of Idlib as a result of bombardment by helicopters by barrel bombs, a citizens woman who was killed in Al-Sarj village due to artillery shelling by the regime forces on the village which is located in the south-east of Idlib, and 2 men who were killed in shelling by the regime forces on areas in Tweineh village and Qalaat al-Madiq town in the north-western countryside of Hama, where the warplanes have carried out 85 raids at least, which targeted the northern countryside of Hama and both southern and south-eastern countryside of Idlib, and the regime’s helicopters also dropped 55 explosive barrels on the same areas, amid shelling by hundreds of artillery and rocket shells, within the most violent airstrikes and ground shelling in weeks.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights also monitored the displacement of more than 400 families from Jisr Al-Shughur city and its vicinity, towards its eastern and northern countryside, for fear of strikes that may be carried out by Russian warplanes in the incoming hours, after the Russian Defense Ministry’s talk about that the play of the “chemical strike will take place in Jisr Al-Shughour”, while the residents who remained are afraid of carrying out a Russian strike under this pretext which has been propagated for, and this displacement comes hours after the SOHR monitored a massive displacement included more than 3000 persons, who displaced from the southern and south-eastern countryside of Idlib towards areas in the northern countryside of Idlib and the north-western countryside of Aleppo, fleeing the intensive shelling on the area.
The Syrian Observatory published in the past 2 weeks, that fears still increase of a chemical attack that may be carried out by the regime forces and their allies in Idlib province in the coming days or weeks; among the population of the factions’ controlled areas in Idlib Province and its surroundings, and as the Russian military authorities fabricate lies and continually airing them through their media, to warn of a chemical attack by parties that oppose the regime after “transporting chemicals to Idlib”, sources of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights suggested that the Russians and the regime may plan to target areas that include families of Asian, Caucasian and Turkestan nationality fighters in the countryside of Idlib and the areas connected to it from the countryside of Latakia and Sahl al-Ghab, especially as the Russian and regime are focusing on the aforementioned areas which includes families of the above-mentioned fighters, especially since these areas are closed areas and are not allowed to be accessed without the official permission from the leadership of the factions that protect them, and the intersected sources confirmed to the Syrian Observatory that the fear among people is rising every day, as the announcement of Idlib military operation gets closer, where the regime forces aims to control the province, and these fears come from people fearing the use chemical weapons by the regime forces and their allies in their shelling, which will accompany the military operation, after the increase of Russian fabricated allegations about the possibility of using it in the shilling of Idlib, where Russia is continuing to promote the lies it fabricated through its media bodies and its Ministry of Defense, in order to justify the military operation for which the regime forces have been preparing for weeks, through bringing thousands of their members and hundreds of vehicles, armored vehicles and weapons, along with fortifying the fronts and the contact lines, in an anticipation for the announcement of the battle which is suggested to be launched soon, and these preparations resulted in increasing the citizens’ fears, of a fierce military operation against Idlib province, which will be accompanied by violent aerial and ground shelling, which may cause large massacres as a result of the great military operations which are being prepared for.
Russia’s fabrication of the justifications about transporting the chlorine as a part of preparations for a chemical attack, comes as a part of its break for its promises within the Syrian territory, whereas the Turkish – Russian truce continues since the 15th of August 2018 with the violations by the regime forces, through artillery, and missile shelling and aerial bombardment which caused casualties and wounded in areas of the truce in the provinces of Aleppo, Idlib, Latakia, and Hama, and although the Russian Force have not been able to control the regime which is under its command; the Russians have been preparing allegations justifying the attack which the regime forces have not stopped preparing for, through bringing vehicles, armored vehicles, equipment and ammunition, and preparing the warplanes, helicopters and airports, and bringing thousands of soldiers and members of their forces and gunmen loyal to them, until they recently transferred the newly recruited people from the Eastern Ghouta, to the frontlines and the combat lines with the rebel and Islamic factions, Hayyaat Tahrir al-Sham, and the factions which have majority of non-Syrian fighters, also more than 600 fighters of these factions were transported to these fronts, also reliable sources confirmed to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights that the chlorine shipments reported by Russia are shipments that are periodically sent to water purification plants and pumping stations to sterilize water, where an international organization responsible for the drinking water in Idlib province had sent 11 barrels of chlorine in June 2018; to water filtration and pumping stations, also earlier shipments of less than that number were distributed to the stations themselves, and the chlorine for water purification is being imported from Turkey through the road of Bab al-Hawa border crossing, while the stations that are outside this organization’s support are being provided with dry chlorine by the UNICEF, like the stations of Jisr al-Shughur city in the western countryside of Idlib, which follow the water Institution of the National Rescue Government, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights also published, that the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitored the regime forces -after they brought military reinforcements to heights under their control in Latakia mountains- fortifying more sites and points after midnight of yesterday, in conjunction with fortification and deploying in sites in their controlled areas in the countryside of Idlib, after brining large enforcement in the past 24 hours to the area in preparation for the grand battle of Idlib.