New footage highlights the killing of the humanitarian workers in Syria
Published: Jan 13, 2014 Reading time: 2 minutes
Prague, Aleppo (14 January 2014) – Three Syrian employees of a Czech humanitarian NGO People In Need (PIN) were killed in Aleppo on 7 January 2014. They died together with five children, all beneficiaries of the NGO, after an indiscriminate rocket attack.
The PIN team had stopped at a bread distribution point in the southern part of the city, where the organization has provided humanitarian aid since late 2012. At around 12:30 pm, four surface-to-surface rockets, probably fired from a goverment military base to the west, exploded in the surrounding area in less than one minute.
Video footage taken immediately after the explosion (download)
One of the rockets hit the bread distribution point killing team leader Qasim Mustafa Qasim, coordinator Ammar Al Alo and driver Muhammed Dillo. „Apart from my colleagues, five children, our beneficiaries, were killed as they gathered around thinking that we are starting the distribution,“ recalls surviving PIN team member Mohammed F. Video footage taken immediately after the explosion shows the terrible aftermath and suffering. It is a tragic irony that the bread distribution points had been established exactly with the aim of avoiding large gatherings of people in front of the bakeries.
You can donate to the SOS Syria account 92329232/0300
(IBAN CZ1703000000000092329232)
CARD PAYMENT HERE
There was another scene of carnage nearby and in total, the four rockets left 21 dead and dozens of wounded. The tragic incident highlights the escalation of the ruthless attacks against civilan targets in Aleppo since mid December 2013. „Barrel bombs are the worst, filled with explosives and pieces of scrap metal and glass. The army throws them from the helicopters high above,“ says Mohammed. „Jets sometimes circle over the city day and night. A bus station and a local market were hit repeatedly,“ Mohammed describes the situation.
PIN condemns in the strongest possible terms the attacks against the civilians in Aleppo and requests all the parties of the conflict to immediately stop this barbaric and unacceptable element of their military operations. International Humanitarian Law must be respected.
PIN requests all the participants of the upcoming Geneva II peace talks to make a priority discussions and agreement, leading to any possible practical arrangements which would diminish the appaling impact of the deepening conflict on the Syrian civilian population.
Simon Panek, director, People In Need
For more information:
Marek Stys, PIN Head of Emergency programs and External relations, +420 777 053 522, Marek.Stys@peopleinneed.cz
Petr Stefan, PIN Media Coordinator, + 420 608 817 958, Petr.Stefan@peopleinneed.cz