Syrian Airstrikes: UN, Human Rights Groups Condemn Massacre

HNGN
The deadly airstrikes which targeted civilians in a crowded market in Douma, Syria, has earned widespread condemnation from the international community.

Airstrikes initiated by Syrian government forces that rained down on the main market of Douma, Syria during rush hour on Sunday, as covered in this HNGN article, has triggered widespread criticism worldwide, with the United Nations expressing horror at the "unacceptable" attack.

U.N. aid chief Stephen O'Brien has stated that the United Nations condemns the airstrike, which has now become one of the bloodiest incidents in the four-year-civil war in Syria.

"I am horrified by the total disrespect for civilian life in this conflict," he said, according to Al Jazeera, adding that he was "particularly appalled" by the increasing death toll.

Staffan de Mistura, the U.N. envoy in Syria has described the attacks while speaking in Geneva, describing them as "devastating," reports NDTV.

"Hitting crowded civilian markets killing almost 100 of its own citizens by a government is unacceptable in any circumstances," he said.

Rami Abdurrahman, head of the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, has stated that the incident is premeditated and the attack was planned very well.

"This is an official massacre that was carried out deliberately," he said, emphasizing that a second missile hit the market a second time after civilians rushed to help the victims of the first missile strike.

In an interview with CNN via Skype. Abdullah al-Shami, a media activist, described the chaos that pervaded the area after the attack.

"In some places there was not enough capabilities to transfer the victims. It was very painful to see dead human bodies just left on the sidewalk. Scores of injured were bleeding while waiting their turn to get treatment," he said, according to CNN.

"This market was bombed recently. The ambulance system was on alert but today the ambulances were not even enough to rescue all the people. The number of the injured was over the capabilities of the field hospitals," he added.

The Syrian crisis has already displaced a huge part of the country's population, with thousands fleeing the country to escape the violence. The influx of refugees from the country has affected other nations, as covered in this HNGN article.