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Ghouta: thousands of civilians flee fresh regime bombardment Besieged enclave of Ghouta on brink of falling to Syrian regime
(about 2 hours later)
More than 12,000 people have fled the besieged region of eastern Ghouta towards Syrian government troops, seeking shelter from an overnight bombardment that killed dozens of people and levelled much of a town in the enclave. The Syrian opposition enclave of Ghouta is on the brink of falling to regime forces, three weeks into a relentless air blitz and seven years to the day since the first stirrings of anti-regime protests, which went on to spark nationwide insurrection, then a devastating war.
Videos broadcast by Russian television stations showed throngs of civilians marching out of the area after three weeks of shelling and airstrikes that have killed more than 1,500 civilians in what was described by UN officials as “hell on earth”. Up to 15,000 people had fled from the town of Hamouriyah by nightfall on Thursday into regime-held areas, their exit aided by Syrian and Russian forces who had besieged them throughout much of the conflict, their defiance withering as another bloody anniversary was marked.
The images of their flight towards government troops that had bombarded their homes the previous night underscored the desperation of civilians faced with a choice of death under the rubble of their homes or displacement and possible retribution by advancing forces loyal to the regime of Bashar al-Assad, which seek to crush the last opposition-held enclave near Damascus. Airstrikes and ground assaults have split Ghouta into three areas. Those who remained in the enclave on the eastern edges of Damascus on Thursday were trying to secure guarantees of safety from Russian officials.
“The most difficult scene is how people are going on foot to those who, a day earlier, or hours earlier, were throwing at them barrel bombs, chlorine, phosphorus, and incendiary weapons,” said one local journalist in eastern Ghouta. “It’s a matter of survival, and people are saying we are dead either way.” The exodus was expected to continue through the night and for the rest of the week, marking the beginning of the end for the most important opposition stronghold in Syria, and allowing the Syrian regime and its allies to eventually claim control of most of the capital.
The flight from the town of Hamouriyeh on Thursday after a night of destruction was confirmed by the war monitor the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which said 12,500 people fled the area towards regime lines. Syrian state TV said thousands more had fled. The likely fall of Ghouta has left the international community scrambling to come up with arrangements for how to feed and house the up to 400,000 people it believes may still be in the area.
It was unclear whether the initial exodus would lead to further flight among the estimated 300,000 civilians still in eastern Ghouta, encouraged by the initial wave. But local medics reported continuing airstrikes and shelling in various areas of the region even as civilians streamed out. Syria has become a war of numbers, all of which make for numbing reading. Nearly two-thirds of its pre-war population are internally displaced or have fled into neighbouring countries. More than 500,000 people have been killed, more than 100,000 people remain under arrest or forcibly disappeared, most of them in government prisons, and a generation of children have faced what the UN describes as psychological ruin.
Many were left questioning what guarantees for safety they would have if they were to leave. The death toll in Ghouta is thought to be above 1,500, with many victims still buried under rubble. Entire neighbourhoods have been flattened by bombing that has regularly been labelled indiscriminate and merciless.
“The problem is those civilians who left have no international guarantees,” said another resident. “What will happen … other than the violation of human rights and forced displacement, is they will take the military age youth to the army and they’ll arrest whoever is on their wanted list.” Aid agencies had pleaded to be allowed to deliver food and medicine to populations that Syrian and Russian officials claimed were led by terrorist groups. The same militants were on Thursday attempting to broker terms of a civilian evacuation and their eventual departure.
He added: “God knows what will happen. The scene makes you weep.” A doctor from Ghouta said many local people remained unsure of what to do. Few appeared to trust guarantees of safe passage that were being offered by the same troops who had bombed them intensely since mid-February.
“As doctors, we will continue our work,” said a physician. “We are from this community. If they remain here, we will stay here. If they choose something else, we will reassess our choices.
“They are taking town after town and everything has been burned. It is systematic destruction that is meant to bring down the entire area on the heads of its residents. There is no place to flee to. People are scared of a slaughter.”
Like other Ghouta residents contacted by the Guardian, the doctor asked to remain anonymous, fearing retribution from regime officials if he decided to flee. A local journalist also declined to put his name to his words.
“Today, there are civilian movements that are demanding at the very least for the United Nations to guarantee the evacuation of these families,” he said.
“The thousands who left the central part of eastern Ghouta are doing so without any guarantees, to regime areas, and no UN organisation can oversee them. They are in areas controlled by the regime.”
Unprecedented protests demand civil liberties and the release of political prisoners after four decades of repressive rule by the Assad family. The regime represses demonstrations in Damascus and the southern city of Deraa but protests continue.Unprecedented protests demand civil liberties and the release of political prisoners after four decades of repressive rule by the Assad family. The regime represses demonstrations in Damascus and the southern city of Deraa but protests continue.
Defecting army colonel Riad al-Asaad sets up the Turkey-based rebel Free Syrian Army. Islamist groups join the revolt.Defecting army colonel Riad al-Asaad sets up the Turkey-based rebel Free Syrian Army. Islamist groups join the revolt.
Regime forces take control of the rebel stronghold in Homs after a month of bombardment. Other bloody operations are carried out, notably in the central city of Hama, after massive anti-regime protests.Regime forces take control of the rebel stronghold in Homs after a month of bombardment. Other bloody operations are carried out, notably in the central city of Hama, after massive anti-regime protests.
FSA fighters launch a battle for Damascus but the government holds firm.FSA fighters launch a battle for Damascus but the government holds firm.
More than 1,400 people die in a chemical weapon attack on rebel-held districts near Damascus.More than 1,400 people die in a chemical weapon attack on rebel-held districts near Damascus.
The US and Assad ally Russia agree a plan to eliminate Syria's chemical weapons, averting punitive US strikes against the regime.The US and Assad ally Russia agree a plan to eliminate Syria's chemical weapons, averting punitive US strikes against the regime.
Hostilities between jihadists and rebel groups turn into an open war in the north. The group that will become known as Islamic State takes Raqqa – the first provincial capital to fall out of regime control – from rebel forces.Hostilities between jihadists and rebel groups turn into an open war in the north. The group that will become known as Islamic State takes Raqqa – the first provincial capital to fall out of regime control – from rebel forces.
A US-led coalition launches airstrikes against Isis in Syria. The strikes benefit Kurdish groups, which since 2013 have run autonomous administrations in Kurdish-majority areas.A US-led coalition launches airstrikes against Isis in Syria. The strikes benefit Kurdish groups, which since 2013 have run autonomous administrations in Kurdish-majority areas.
Russia launches airstrikes in support of Assad's troops, who are on the back foot. Russian firepower helps turn the tables for the regime, which begins to retake rebel-held territory.Russia launches airstrikes in support of Assad's troops, who are on the back foot. Russian firepower helps turn the tables for the regime, which begins to retake rebel-held territory.
The regime retakes Syria's second city, Aleppo.The regime retakes Syria's second city, Aleppo.
Russia and Iran, as backers of the Syrian regime, and Turkey, a supporter of the rebels, organise talks in Kazakhstan, between representatives of both sides. The process leads to the creation of four "de-escalation zones".Russia and Iran, as backers of the Syrian regime, and Turkey, a supporter of the rebels, organise talks in Kazakhstan, between representatives of both sides. The process leads to the creation of four "de-escalation zones".
A sarin gas attack on the rebel-held town of Khan Sheikhun kills more than 80 people, prompting Washington to attack a regime airbase.A sarin gas attack on the rebel-held town of Khan Sheikhun kills more than 80 people, prompting Washington to attack a regime airbase.
Further complicating an already drawn-out conflict, Turkey launches an operation against the Kurdish People's Protection Units which, with US support, played a key role in beating back Isis.Further complicating an already drawn-out conflict, Turkey launches an operation against the Kurdish People's Protection Units which, with US support, played a key role in beating back Isis.
Regime launches a ferocious assault on the remaining rebel-held enclave near Damascus, eastern Ghouta. In under four weeks, the Russian-backed onslaught kills more than 1,200 civilians.Regime launches a ferocious assault on the remaining rebel-held enclave near Damascus, eastern Ghouta. In under four weeks, the Russian-backed onslaught kills more than 1,200 civilians.
Local medics said 43 people were killed on Wednesday, compounding the humanitarian catastrophe in a region. The death toll rose during the afternoon as other towns in eastern Ghouta continued to suffer airstrikes and shelling that residents said had continued overnight. Mahmoud Bwedany, a student, said: “What will happen … other than the violation of human rights and forced displacement, is they will take the military-age youth to the army and they’ll arrest whoever is on their wanted list. The scene makes you weep. We need someone to stand up to the regime and Russia.”
Local medics issued urgent distress calls as Assad forces breached rebel lines in Hamouriyeh, which last week was subjected to apparent toxic gas attack. An opposition counterattack in Hamouriyah reclaimed some neighbourhoods on Thursday night. However, a sense of resignation hung over other parts of the enclave that had been central to the opposition’s stand against the Syrian leader, Bashar al-Assad.
“More than 5,000 people are at risk of annihilation,” said a doctor in the town by text message. “Please get our voice out to the world, this might be the last message I’m able to send. The wounded are in the streets and cannot be moved and the planes are targeting any movement. Dozens of families are trying to flee under fire and we don’t know their fate.” The protest movement that erupted on 15 March 2011 was underpinned by a class struggle, with the ranks of the original rebel groups largely comprised of the country’s working poor. Ghouta, 15 minutes’ drive from the presidential palace, had defied multiple attempts to retake it, as the rebel strongholds of Homs, Aleppo and Zabadani fell.
The doctor has been unreachable since Wednesday night, the eve of the seventh anniversary of the revolt against the Assad regime. It was first hit by airstrikes in late 2012, then devastated by a massive sarin attack in August 2013, which killed more than 1,300 people, and was linked by the UN, UK, US and France to the Syrian military.
Wednesday’s death toll brought the total number of civilians killed since 19 February in eastern Ghouta to 1,540, according to local civilian authorities. More than half a million people have been killed across Syria in a civil war that appears to have no end in sight. Ghouta locals said they feared Syrian officials would wreak revenge on them if they were forced to cross into regime-controlled territory, and the impunity that has characterised the conflict would mean there would be no retribution for any forced disappearances.
The civilian death toll is unconfirmed because many bodies remain unclaimed under the rubble of homes. The Assad regime’s offensive in the eastern Ghouta, once the breadbasket of Damascus, aims to crush the last opposition stronghold near the Syrian capital. All eleven attempts to sanction the Syrian government at the UN security council have been blocked by Russia and China. Plaintive demands by UN officials that civilian populations be spared from bombing have been routinely ignored and Syria’s health and education systems have been systematically targeted.
Eastern Ghouta has been under siege for years and in 2013 was the target of the deadliest chemical attack of the conflict, which killed more than 1,200 people. The US national security adviser, HR McMaster, blamed Russia and Iran for the deaths and said they should both pay a political and economic price for their support of the Assad regime.
Regime forces backed by Russian airstrikes have split the region into three distinct areas, each under blockade, as relentless waves of aerial and artillery bombardment pummel the enclave. McMaster said Russian bombers conducted more than 20 sorties a day against eastern Ghouta, while Moscow had impeded aid deliveries and international investigations into Assad’s use of chemical weapons against his people.
“They are taking town and after town and everything has been burned,” said another doctor in the town of Arbin. “It is systematic destruction that is meant to bring down the entire area on the heads of its residents. There is no place to flee to. People are scared of a slaughter,” he added. Speaking at the Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington DC, McMaster claimed that over the past six years, Tehran had provided more than $16bn (£11.5bn) to the regime and transported foreign Shia militias and weapons to Syria.
The violence has continued despite an ongoing deal to evacuate wounded civilians on a list agreed upon with the government from another town in the enclave, Douma, supervised by the Red Cross and Red Crescent. It has persisted also despite a UN security council resolution calling for a month-long ceasefire “without delay” and unimpeded humanitarian aid deliveries. “It is time to impose serious political and economic consequences on Moscow and Tehran,” said McMaster, whose position is widely believed to be under threat, in part because of his tough stance towards Russia.
The fall of Ghouta would leave Idlib province as the final major opposition stronghold in Syria. Home to more than 2.6 million people, at least one million of them displaced or forcibly transferred from elsewhere in the country, Idlib is a volatile mix of populations and militant groups.
Up to 15,000 extremists aligned to al-Qaida have held sway over much of the area for the past three years. However, they have been forced from many of their strongholds by attacks from opposition groups in recent weeks.
Ali Deeb, a Ghouta student, said: “We don’t want to go to Idlib. “We’re only just coming to terms with what is happening here. Somebody has to help us, surely.”
SyriaSyria
RussiaRussia
Middle East and North AfricaMiddle East and North Africa
Bashar al-AssadBashar al-Assad
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