Regime’s warplanes target al-Bab’s countryside in conjunction with the shelling escalation by the Turkish forces on the city, casualties are 207 at least
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights was informed the warplanes and helicopter believed to be belong to the regime carried out about 20 airstrike targeting places in the southern countryside of al-Bab, and other areas in the vicinity of Deir Hafer town in the eastern countryside of Aleppo, those intensive airstrikes came with escalation since today’s morning Tuesday the 10th of January 2017 by the rebel and Islamic factions of “Euphrates Shield” supported by Turkish forces and warplanes, where the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights learned that the Turkish forces and the “Euphrates Shield” targeted since this morning places in al-Bab city and its countryside by tens of artillery and rocket shells, coincided with the flight of the Turkish warplanes, in the skies of al-Bab area and targeting the city with several bombs and missiles that left considerable damage in the property of citizens and the public facilities, which also caused injuries.
The heavy shelling by Turkish forces killed two persons at least and injured about 10 others -including several children- rising the number of casualties to 207 civilian citizens, including 49 children under the age of eighteen and 25 citizen women over the age of 18, they were killed in the northeastern countryside of Aleppo, and the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights documented their killing due to the Turkish shelling, explosions and shooting in al-Bab city and its vicinity, since the 13th of November 2016, which is the date of the “Euphrates Shield’s” arrival to the outskirts of al-Bab city, until Tuesday the 10th of January of 2017.
Where the Syrian Observatory documented the death of 170 of them -including 36 children and 19 citizen women- by Turkish artillery and rocket shelling, and raids by Turkish warplanes on al-Bab city, also 13 others were killed -including 4 children- in shelling by the Turkish forces and by airstrikes on areas in the nearby town of Tedef which is also controlled by the “Islamic State”, while the Observatory documented the death of the remaining 24 -including 9 children and 6 citizens- in mine explosions and bullets of the “Islamic State” in al-Bab city and its countryside, also the military operations, the Turkish shelling, the air raids and explosions have injured more than 1000 civilians, including hundreds of children and women, and some of them were permanently disabled.
Also in the wake of the agreement on displacing about 27 thousand people including more than 7 thousand fighter from the factions’ used-to-be controlled square in the southwestern section of Aleppo city towards the western countryside of Aleppo, the Turkish forces on 21st of December 2016 carried out a violent attack with the rebel and Islamic factions of “Euphrates Shield” operation, after Turkey got the Russian green light to broke into al-Bab city and control it, and that after an understanding between these parties about the displacement and evacuation in Aleppo, Al-Fu’ah, Kafriya and then Madaya later, and a desire by them to prevent the Syria Democratic Forces from exploiting the loophole of al-Bab and controlling it, which will allow them to connect the democratic self-management areas together in the three provinces: “Al-Jazeerah – Kobani – Afrin”, while the intensive targeting of the city using shells and rockets, along with the intensified shelling and raids that took place elsewhere in al-Bab city which accompanied the military operations caused a trail of destruction in the city, in both the property of citizens and the public utilities. The escalation of bombing increased on al-Bab city and the nearby towns, villages and areas controlled by the “Islamic State” after the first defeat for Turkish forces and fighters of “Euphrates Shield” operating in the 21st of December 2016.