The Syrian Observatory For Human Rights

January 2020: Nearly 14,000 air and ground strikes, 13 massacres, and over 1,200 people killed

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights documented the death of 1,201 people in January 2020, as follows:

Civilian death toll: 262 persons, including 60 children under the age of 18, and 41 women over the age of 18 distributed as follows:

  • 72 civilians, including 29 children and 15 women were killed in Russian jets bombardment.
  • 64 civilians, including 14 children under the age of 18 and ten women over the age of 18 were killed by regime jets.

  • four persons, including one child under the age of 18 and one female over the age of 18 were killed by regime helicopters’ strikes.

  • 24 civilians, including four women and five children were killed in regime ground forces fire.

  • 22 civilians, including four children and five females were killed as a result of opposition factions’ shelling.

  • Five civilians, including one child and one female were killed by SDF gunfire.

  • One child and one man were killed by the Turkish border guards.

  • Two men were killed by HTS.

  • 32 civilians, including one female were killed in unknown circumstances.

  • Two civilian females were killed by the “Islamic State”.

  • 2 civilians, including three children were killed in IED and landmine explosions.

  • Seven civilians, including three children and one female were killed in a booby-trapped explosions.

  • One female was killed by Turkish forces.

  • Four civilians were killed in separate assassinations across Syria.

Syrian fighters of Islamic factions, opposition factions and other movements and organizations: 146

Syria Democratic Forces: 9

Regime forces: 269

Members of the Popular Committees, and the National Defense Forces, and loyalists to regime forces of Syrian citizens: 200

Lebanese Hezbollah: 1

Loyalists to the regime forces of non-Syrian citizens mostly of the Shiite sect: 18

Fighters of Islamic factions, ISIS, Al-Nusra Front (Qaeda organization of the Levant), and Muhjereen and al-Ansar Army and Islamic Turkestan Party of non-Syrian citizens: 286

Turkish soldiers: 10.

Syrian Observatory activists documented that Russian and Syrian regime aircraft and regime ground forces carried out 13,625 air and ground strikes killing 161 civilians, including 49 children under the age of 18, and 30 women over the age of 18. The air and ground strikes were distributed as follows:

  • Russian jets carried out 994 airstrikes killing 72 civilians, including 29 children under the age of 18, and 15 women over 18.

  • The regime jets carried out 968 strikes killing 64 civilians, including 14 children and ten women.

  • The regime helicopters dropped 673 barrel bombs killing four civilians, including one child and one female.

  • Regime ground forces targeted the “de-escalation” zone with 10,990 shells and rockets killing 21 civilians, including five children and four women.

The warring forces committed 13 massacres in January 2020, leaving 121 civilians dead, including 32 children under the age of 18, and 19 women over the age of 18 were massacred as follows:

  • Six massacres committed by Russian jets leaving 47 civilians dead, including 19 children under the age of 18, and ten women over the age of 18.

  • Four massacres committed by regime jets leaving 38 civilians dead, including nine children under the age of 18, and six women over the age of 18.

  • One massacre committed by regime ground forces leaving nine civilians dead, including five children under the age of 18, and two women over the age of 18.

  • A massacre committed by jihadi groups leaving eight civilians, including one child and one woman.

  • A massacre committed by anonymous body leaving 12 civilians.

Two booby-trapped vehicles hit Turkish-held areas, leaving seven people dead, including three children and one female.

The Islamic State and its sleeper cells carried out at least nine attacks in January, killing 24 people: two civilian females, nine SDF fighters and 13 regime soldiers.

Despite all the attempts to find solutions, and the displacement, and the manipulation of the Syrians future, and the UNSC resolution and truces, and despite the low intensity of killing due to the international desire to seek a solution, however, the bloodshed continues on the Syrian territory and the killing and fighting continues without peace, and the cease-fire truces was only breaks between the sides of the conflict in Syria, where some parties were winners and others lost influence and control, so, we at the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, we call for the international parties once again to work hard and make their utmost efforts to stop the bloodshed of the Syrian people, who faced tyranny and injustice to reach a state of justice, democracy, freedom and equality.

The Syrian Observatory renew its commitment to continue monitoring and documenting the massacres, violations, war crimes and crimes against humanity committed against the Syrian people, in addition to publishing the statistics and causalities of those practices in order to stop these crimes, violations and atrocities against the Syrian people, and bring the perpetrators of these crimes to special international courts, so that they do not escape punishment for the crimes they committed against the people who was and still dream to achieve a state of democracy, freedom, justice and equality for all components of the Syrian people.

HD Infographic: death toll in January 2020:

HD Infographic: civilian causalities in January 2020:

HD Infographic: massacres committed in January 2020:

HD Infographic: air and ground strikes in January 2020: