Taqd, Aleppo, Syria, 25 November 2016.Two airstrikes by what is understood to be Russian warplanes have attacked a vast area of the village of Taqd, in the western countryside of Aleppo during Friday prayers. Taqd was subjected to two bombardments. The airstrikes have led to the killing of nine children, two women and three men and caused more than nineteen people to be injured, eight of which are children. The casualties were already internally- displaced people fleeing from other war-torn areas in Syria. The raids also caused the collapsing of a number of houses. At the same time the nearby village of Tramaneen, as well as other villages in the area, were also hit by airstrikes, causing a number of casualties among civilians. In an attempt to find refuge from the strikes, people have started living in caves. Several villages south of Damascus were also subjected to airstrikes. The town of Duma in the east of Damascus was hit by more than 15 airstrikes leading to many casualties. In the western part of Aleppo casualties from rebel fire were also recorded, including the death of ten children.
These strikes are part of an intensified military campaign of airstrikes and shelling in Aleppo from earlier this month, in an effort by the Syrian government to recapture the city. Over the last few days, the Syrian government offensive on eastern Aleppo has been particularly intense pounding several districts, in particular the Al-Mashad and Al-Ansari neighbourhoods. On Thursday night, intense air strikes and artillery fire has led to the death of more than 30 civilians in eastern Aleppo. The same night rescue workers were involved in the eastern part of the city in their attempt to rescue the civilians trapped under the rubble as a result of the airstrikes. Due to the intense nature of the airstrikes the rescue of people was extremely complex. Abdullah Hussein, a member of the administrative council of the Civil Defence, has explained to Images Lives the many challenges for the members of the Civil Defence or White Helmets during the latest airstrikes. Several sites needed to be attended at the same time, and they didn’t have enough personnel to do so. They also had to travel on a reduced number of vehicles since some had been destroyed during a recent attack to their headquarters. Moreover, the Russian repeated airstrikes on the same sites made their work quite dangerous, if not impossible. The poor quality of the available fuel also slowed their travel to the bombarded sites.
Heavy clashes between the Syrian Army and the opposition forces took place on Friday in the Masake Hanano district. The capture of eastern Aleppo would represent an extremely important victory for the Syrian government and a big blow to the rebels. Although the UN plans to deliver aid to Aleppo and evacuate the sick and wounded has been approved by the rebels, it is still waiting for approval from Damascus.
Photographer: Juma Muhammad/Images Live
Report: Tina Lozio/Images Live
Editor: Anna Samuels/Images Live
