"A criminal and barbaric act of violence" - A camp hosting families already displaced by the conflict in Syria is bombed
Published: May 9, 2016 Reading time: 2 minutes
In the early hours of Thursday morning, May 5th, a camp for internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the Syrian province of Idlib was bombed. The camp was established in January 2016 and hosted thousands of displaced people who had fled southern and northern rural Aleppo.
According to local sources, the attack left dozens dead and wounded, among them women and children. The millions of people who have been internally displaced by the conflict remain trapped in the country due to the closure of the borders.
Safi, the access coordinator at People in Need, who visited the camp following the attack describes the situation there.
“The attack happened on the 5th of May at 05:00. Two missiles were fired, one of which did not explode. There were approximately 430 tents in the Kamouna camp, accommodating approximately 400 families. The camp is located on the top of a hill and there is no medical point in the camp. Most of the people living in this camp are IDPs from northern Aleppo countryside. 50 tents were completely destroyed in the attack, and it is estimated that over 70 people have been killed and 25 injured. 30% of the people who were living in this camp have been displaced again out of the area. The people in the camp are asking that a new camp be built for them, closer to the border in Atmeh or Aqrabat.“
Since the beginning of the conflict in Syria, more than 4,8 million people left the country. Another 6.6 million, who have been displaced remain inside Syria. They cannot return to their homes or leave the country, as the borders are closed. „People in Syria are trapped without the opportunity to leave to find safety elsewhere. Sadly, this is not the first attack of this sort. It is a criminal and barbaric act of violence, purposefully targeted at civilians,” says Tomas Kocian, relief aid coordinator at People in Need.
After 5 years of conflict, violence continues to escalate and international humanitarian law conitinues to be violated. Attacks against innocent men, women and children must stop immediately. Bombing civilians is a war crime.
