The Syrian Observatory For Human Rights

Again, the regime forces target Hwyjet Katea’ raising the death toll to at least 6 with increasing fears for the lives of about 150 trapped civilians

The area of Hwyjet Katea’ which is a river island in the Euphrates River at outskirts Deir Ezzor city, witnessed renewed shelling by the regime forces on places in Hwyjet Katea’, in which about 150 civilians are trapped, they fled the military operations in Deir Ezzor city before regime forces’ control over it with the support of the gunmen loyal to them, and the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights learned that the renewed shelling that targeted Hwyjet Katea’ has caused the death of 3 citizens today on Monday the 13th of November 2017, raising to 6 including a man and his child, the number of persons who were killed since the first attack that targeted Hwyjet Katea’ on the 10th of November 2017, and the some of the injured people are still in a critical situation, amid growing fears for the lives of civilians, after the regime forces has proved that they do not care about the fate of civilians trapped in Hwyjet Katea’.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights published yesterday Sunday that the regime forces started storming Hawija Katea, an island in the Euphrates River, near the outskirts of Deir Ezzor city, and the storming came after the regime forces and their allied militiamen advanced to the area through water bridges, and reliable sources asserted to the SOHR that clashes are taking place between the regime forces and their allied militiamen against members of ISIS existing in Hawija, amid fears for lives of about 150 civilians and concerns about shelling of the regime forces and violations against them, as the regime forces did in the past weeks against 40 civilians in the countryside of Deir Ezzor and the vicinity of the city, who were executed right after their arrest or targeting them in the outskirts of their controlled areas.

Also the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights published on the 4th of November 2017 that Hundreds of civilians are still stuck in Hawija Kate and their fate is still unknown, after they were forced to displace to this area, which is a river Island in the center of the Euphrates River. Reliable sources told the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights that the Syria Democratic Forces approved to allow these civilians to cross the river to the SDF-held areas, and preparations began to send boats to help these civilians to reach the eastern banks of the Euphrates River, however, the regime and Russian forces announced their refusal to the exit of civilians towards the SDF-held areas, and the Russian forces, stationed in Deir Ezzor, threatened targeting any boat moves to save the civilians stuck in Hawija Kate, where the regime forces tends to harass the civilians and ISIS members in Hawija Kate, waiting for the approval of the latter’s demand to move to the organization-held areas in the eastern countryside of Deir Ezzor.

The SOHR published on Saturday the 4th of November that it was not enough for the regime forces to kill citizens during the past days, months and years, by targeting them in Deir Ezzor city and its countryside, under several pretexts fabricated by their media and loyalists, thus, these forces resumed to follow them by targeting them in the last place they reached near Deir Ezzor city, and the forces which came to “liberate the citizens” became the first to target them and they lasted till the end.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitored during the past 24 hours, that the regime forces resumed to target hundreds of citizens of who escaped to Hawija Katea “Katea Island”, which is located in the middle of the Euphrates River, and it is a river island, where the regime forces shelled the citizens who are in this area, and who are besieged by the Syria Democratic Forces – which are in the east of the Euphrates River – and the regime forces, as well as encircling the citizens by the members of the “Islamic State” organization who accompany the citizens, and who withdrew with the citizens from Deir Ezzor city to Hawija Katea, after the regime forces managed to impose their full control on Deir Ezzor city on the 2nd of November 2017.

And reliable sources confirmed to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights that the “Islamic State” organization demands to allow the remaining members who accompany the citizens, with hundreds of citizens exist in Hawija Katea, to get out to its controlled areas in the eastern countryside of Deir Ezzor, and the regime forces converge with it in this demand, as they are also working on bringing the members of the organization and the citizens out, to the controlled areas of the organization, without allowing those who are in Hawija Katea to stay or return to their homes in the city recently, while the sources confirmed that the SDF inclusively agree to allow citizens to enter their controlled areas, on condition that the members of the “Islamic State” organization surrender to the SDF.

And the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights published on the 2nd of November 2017, that the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights learned that the regime forces and the militiamen loyal to them of Syrian, Arab and Asian nationalities; and under the command of the Brigadier Suhail al-Hassan aka the “Tiger”, and with a cover of Russian aerial bombardment, were able to achieve a strategic advancement represented by controlling the entire city of Deir Ezzor, in which the regime forces lost control of large areas of the city in the middle of July 2014.