Women and children account for over 40 percent of deaths from massacres committed in the month of October alone, the Syrian Network for Human Rights said in its monthly report released on Wednesday, November 4.
According to the report, regime forces committed 29 massacres, 11 of them in Damascus, seven in Aleppo, six in Homs, three in Idleb, in addition to one massacre in Deir-ez-Zor and one in Hama.
Russian forces were responsible for 10 massacres over the past month, five of them in Aleppo and two each in Homs and Idleb, and one other in Hama,
The report also documented one massacre in Aleppo committed by an unidentified group.
In total, the massacres resulted in the deaths of 513 people, including 159 children and 62 women (43 percent of victims were women and children). According to the network, the figures are "very high," indicating most massacres were committed against civilians.
The report indicated that Syrian regime forces had killed 372 people, including 97 children and 43 women; Russian forces killed 126 people, including 58 children and 19 women, while 15 people, including four children, were the victims of the massacres by unidentified parties.
The Network explained the term "massacre" was used to describe any event where at least "five peaceful people are being killed in one attack."
The report also stressed that government forces had violated the provisions of international human rights law that protects the right to live by engaging in acts of random shelling, as they were either deliberate or random, and targeted a number of unarmed civilians.
The Network concluded its report by calling on the Syrian government to allow all relief and human rights organizations, journalists and the UN International Independent Investigation Commission to enter Syria to ensure the protection of civilian life.
This article was translated and edited by The Syrian Observer. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.
