Syria: At least 91 die in surge of attacks ahead of ceasefire

Bags of body parts. Three young siblings killed along with their mother. A pregnant woman lying dead under a fallen roof. These sights – described by Syrians after a marketplace bombing in the northern Syrian city of Idlib on Saturday – represent a fraction of the carnage from Russian or government air strikes in the two days since Russia and the United States declared that a new ceasefire would begin on Monday.

At least 91 people have been killed and scores wounded in two days of attacks on rebel-held areas around the country, mainly in Idlib and in the divided city of Aleppo, according to tallies by doctors, rescuers and monitoring groups.

The violence has deepened mistrust among Syrians that the ceasefire, agreed late on Friday night, will deliver on its promise to ground the government warplanes opposition groups say cause the war’s greatest death toll.

Rebels, who have no air power, also attacked government-held territory, mainly with mortar shells. The Syrian state news media reported rebel shelling in several cities – Damascus, Aleppo, Hama and Daraa – but did not say whether there were any casualties.

Uptick in violence

In any war, it is common for the parties to escalate attacks in the days or hours before a truce, and in this case the uptick was sharp. “I will tell my expectations for the coming two days,” Abdelkafi al-Hamdo, a schoolteacher and anti-government activist, said in a text message minutes after the deal between the United States and Russia was announced.

“Assad will try to kill as much as possible before the claimed ceasefire,” he said, referring to President Bashar al-Assad. “A lot of shelling and bombs will fall upon civilians, especially the almost empty markets.” On Saturday, air strikes hit Idlib, Aleppo and the Damascus suburb of Douma. Yesterday, Hamdo wrote grimly, “We know what Assad and Russia are.”

On Sunday, Government-controlled news media said Syrian forces had carried out attacks on insurgents in several provinces. Russian officials have denied that their warplanes have been responsible for a single civilian casualty in nearly a year of air strikes; the monitoring group Airwars.org estimates the number at more than 3,000.

The heaviest strikes over the weekend happened in Idlib, a province held by insurgents ranging from the al-Qaeda-linked group formerly known as Jabhat al-Nusra, which recently changed its name to Jabhat Fatah al-Sham, to US-backed rebel groups.

‘Gift’ for the feast

The strikes hit a marketplace as people shopped for Eid al-Adha, or the Feast of the Sacrifice, a major Muslim holiday.

The ceasefire is set to begin Monday at sundown, when the holiday starts. “Idlib’s people got a gift for the feast,” said Mohammad Najdat Kaddour, a resident of the nearby town of Binnish who came to Idlib to film the aftermath. “This was their gift.

“People decided to go out after hearing there was a truce on Eid,” he said via internet chat. He said he was incensed not only at the Syrian government, but also at the US for supporting a deal he considered worthless. “Do you believe there’s something called a truce?” he said. “They are all a bunch of criminals.”

Residents compiled a list of the dead, including three young siblings, Sidra, Abdelkareem and Mohammad Arafa, who had been killed along with their mother. Videos from the scene posted online showed rubble, overturned carts and the bodies of children and adults.

In Douma, near Damascus, residents reported the deaths of two young brothers who had lost a third brother last year. In Aleppo, doctors reported new casualties on Sunday morning from another round of barrel bombing. Youssef Mohammad Almosto (60) was reported dead; a 36-year-old man had a leg amputated, and children were being treated for injuries.

All the while, Syrian armed opposition groups were debating whether to accept the terms of the deal, which calls for a halt to violence for seven days, followed by joint operations by the United States and Russia against designated terrorist groups such as Islamic State and Jabhat Fatah al-Sham.

Opposition groups – including those strongly against al-Qaeda and Islamic State – widely believe the deal is stacked against them. And some government supporters also distrust the deal.

Yet virtually all Syrians would welcome a respite, as was provided under a short-lived ceasefire in February. They therefore may be willing to give it a try, even though the Russian and United States officials who brokered it have themselves voiced their doubts that it will work.

The plan accepts the presence on the battlefield of other groups designated as terrorists by the US – such as Hizbullah – that are battling on the side of the Syrian government, and considers them parties to the ceasefire. Iran, Hizbullah and the Syrian government have all declared that they accept the deal. – (New York Times)