SNHR: The Second Largest Chemical Weapons Attack on Civilians in the Modern Era - Impunity Watch

(Documenting the chemical weapons massacre in the Damascus countryside 21/8/2013 )

531 victims have been documented; including 511 civilians, 117 children, 108 women and, in addition, 9000 injuries

Prepared by Syrian Network for Human Rights.

Period Covered: 21/8/2013

Date of issue: 26/8/2013

Introduction:

In the last report issued by SNHR about using chemical weapon by Syrian regime in 5/8/2013, we documented 28 attacks that led to 83 victims, and almost 1271 injuries.

Syrian Network for Human Rights had sent the report to a large number of human rights, media, and political bodies around the world, including chemical weapons inquiry mission led by Dr. Ake Sellstrom, Please check the following link:

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B9Bj18tlYYKBSTRDZlJHdkZRcUk/edit

Syrian regime owns almost 700 tons of chemical weapons, the quantity is able to manufacture almost 2500 artillery shell and 100 chemical warheads for Scud missiles , which is enough to annihilate the population of Damascus, Homs, Hama, and Aleppo.

at least 300 persons work in Syrian chemical weapon development program, mostly from the Alwite sect, and they surrounded with secrecy and continuous monitoring, and no one know about them even army leaders or ministries.

Wednesday 21/8/2013, almost 3 am, Syrian Government Forces shelled Ghouta Sharqiya then at 5 am shelled Ghouta Gharbia, according to SNHR’s team with dissidents experts form Syrian regime and in preliminary estimates that Syrian regime had launched almost 10 missiles, with capacity of almost 20 liter for each, that’s mean total is 200 liter, and considered the second largest chemical attack after Sadam Husain’s regime used chemical attack in Iraq in 16-17/3/1988, which led to the death of thousands of people and were disgrace of humanity, the tragedy is repeated now again against the Syrian people.

SNHR documented the killing of 531 Syrian citizens by name, video, and photo, as a result of targeting Western and Easter Ghouta:

Civilians: 511 victims, including 117 children and 108 women:

Among the victims, we documented 33 citizens but we didn’t get their names, because the residents didn’t recognize them, but we have photos of them.

FSA Fighters: 20 victims

Although a number of injuries have exceeded 9000 citizens, who were transferred to medical points, as we were told by many doctors from different medical points, and according to what SNHR’s member documented in Damascus and countryside, or what we’ve got from photos and videos for injured citizens (via photographers and trusted activists dealing with them from long time ago and have good credibility), the network checked them (please check the report details) :

The massive rise in victims’ number confirms that government forces used weapons of mass destruction and not just conventional weapons, and through the photos and videos taken by Syrian network for human rights’ team members in Damascus and countryside and other photos and videos sent to us via e-mail by Photographers and activists communicate with the network. It is clear to us that the neighborhoods that were shelled are residential neighborhoods, there are some shops in these neighborhoods, as is the nature of cities and towns in Syria, and did not note the presence of any military or even chemical facility to be a source of leakage.

There is also another cause of the high numbers of casualties, the siege imposed on Eastern and Western Ghouta by the Syrian government for more than 14 months and prevent the introduction of gasoline and fuel, where residents couldn’t get access to medical points by cars or motorbikes, because they were out of gasoline, so they had to walk which led to the death of a large number of them due to delay the treatment.

The siege has created a heavy lack of medicines and equipment to treat the injured and causing the death of a large number of them also.

Report Details:

On Wednesday 21/8/2013, at 2:45 am (according to Damascus), government forces were shelled with a rocket launcher the cities of Zamalka and Ain Tarma, and buffer zone between Zamalka and Hiza town.

First: we recorded the fall of 4 missiles carrying poisonous chemical materials, in the city of Zamalka, and specifically on:

1- Almazraa area

2- The area behind Najeb oil station

3- The area of Zamalka female school for basic education

Second: A missile fell on the communication street area between Zamalka and Haza.

Third: Ain Tarma city, shelled at least by three missiles:

1- Ain Tarma tanks area

2- Altabal area of Ain Tarma

3- Alzainiah neighborhood

Also shelled Aloazameah city in Western Ghouta at 5:15 am by a missile carrying poisonous chemical materials.

Map showing the area shelled in Ain Tarma with the coordinates of that point according to Syrian network for human rights’ member in Damascus countryside:

https://maps.google.com/maps?q=33.514769,36.346024&num=1&t=h&z=17

Map showing the area shelled in Zamalka with the coordinates of these points according to Syrian network for human rights’ member in Damascus countryside:

https://maps.google.com/maps?q=33.521174,36.354511&num=1&t=h&z=17

https://maps.google.com/maps?q=33.521943,36.351979&num=1&t=h&z=17

https://maps.google.com/maps?q=33.52366,36.357279&num=1&t=h&z=17

https://maps.google.com/maps?q=33.524841,36.35656&num=1&t=h&z=17

https://maps.google.com/maps?q=33.524608,36.36098&num=1&t=h&z=17

https://maps.google.com/maps?q=33.524304,36.361259&num=1&t=h&z=17

Syrian network for human rights, which is considered one of the most important sources of documenting victims of the armed conflict in Syria for the United Nations, and we have an agreement with the Organization of the United Nations which documented victims of conflict around the world (HRDAG) and certificate of appreciation, where we rely on strict standards on authentication via network’s members deployed in various Syrian governorates, and by taking the accounts from two sources do not know each other, and validate videos and photos by technical experts, in addition to other criteria mentioned in details on the Website.

According to SNHR’s criteria, we have documented the killing of 531 Syrian citizens but our estimation refer to the murder of at least 800 people because there are many places that we couldn’t get to. We are still receiving names and images successively. Many victims died without documenting.

Documenting 531 names, photos and videos are very important and proves that the actual numbers are much more. This number of course does not include missing people whose fate has not been determined and estimated within the dozens.

Please see the following link for a complete list of names with the pictures and video for each name:

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B9Bj18tlYYKBQmd2U2VPN3N4a1U/edit?usp=sharing

Among the 511 civilian victims (the majority are civilians, 97%), among the civilians:

117 children with proportion of 22%

108 women with proportion of 21%

(the proportion of children and women victims is 43%, which is very high and indicate the targeting of purely civilian areas).

23 Palestinian (11 children and 3 women).

The following link include names, photo and way of death:

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B9Bj18tlYYKBdktMcVpwSHFheEU/edit?usp=sharing

Only 20 FSA fighters were killed during their existence and deploying in this area. Almost 4% of the total number of victims:

following link include FSA’s looses (names, photo and way of death):

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B9Bj18tlYYKBakVaUjJ1NWtoaU0/edit?usp=sharing

We have to indicate that the Government forces had followed the missile shelling with chemical weapons, mortars, and heavy artillery, which prevented dozens of civilians from going out to rooftops and led to their deaths from inside their homes after inhaling poisonous gases.

Accounts of eight doctor’s to SNHR matched the symptoms that appeared on hundred of patients and treat it: shortness of breath, suffocation, muscular convulsions, oral foam , increasing body secretions leaked from eyes and nose, eye redness, blurred vision, hear and eyelash stiffness, these are the symptoms resulting from nerve-gas poisoning.

SNHR estimates the injuries between 9000 and 10000 injuries, now running out of medicines that can treat chemical weapons injuries such as hydrocortisone , dexamethasone, Atropine and Epinephrine.

According to inquiries and investigations conducted by SNHR about the source of shelling missiles, it shows that it had been launched from areas under the control of Syrian regime, and the photos shows it is clear that theses missiles have relatively small engine, that mean it had launched from near places, not as the photo documented by the network of using long-range ballistic missiles with big engines.

Media activist Abo Omar filmed the video that shows missiles launching, and you can communicate with him via Skype account:” bees1981″

He told us the following:

“One of the places that I expect that it may be the place of launching short-range missiles, that shelled the Eastern Ghouta are Qaboon and specifically of” special units “between the Jobar, Qaboon and Barzah, it is an area where the regime shelled surface to surface missiles, mortars , rocket launchers and others.”

“On the day of the chemical hit, I was in a high place in the Eastern Ghout.”

This is the location coordinates, and there is a video showing launching missiles of limited push, but the fire from which it came out doesn’t look like the located missiles made by Free Syrian Army

We know our missiles and the color of fire that came from them,

33.54703,36.333536

the video that I’ve filmed:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_gLsKrB2PV8&feature=c4-overview&list=UU03hOuXMGhtkvtKOxbT4gQA “

Some survivors’ accounts:

Date: 26/8/2013.