Fleeing Families Risk Death as Regime Jets Target Raqqa’s Civilian Neighborhoods

Citizens trade "possible" death for "less likely" death as families attempt to evade Assad's air strikes in the ISIS-held city

According to activists and residents in the city of Raqqa, dozens of families began to flee their homes just hours after regime fighter jets began targeting civilian neighborhoods in the city, leaving dozens dead and wounded.

Media activist Osama Abu Zeid confirmed that many of the displaced families fled from one area to another, such as al-Mansour Street, ar-Rumaila, and ad-Diriyah, in an attempt to dodge the shelling. "It was an escape from a possible death, to a less likely death," Abu Zeid said.

In an interview with al-Souria Net, Abu Zeid added that many of the displaced families could not relocate to pro-regime areas due to security reasons, while "Turkey has closed its border, and crossing its border has now become dangerous and expensive. Fleeing into the countryside has also become impossible after ISIS expelled the displaced people from schools and guidance units."

Al-Souria Net learnt from local sources that dozens of families are currently preparing to leave their homes in the unsafe neighborhoods of al-Fardos, as-Sinaa, Thakana, the 22nd of February and Tel Abiyad. Sources said they expected the rate of displacement to increase, especially if regime aircrafts continued to target the city in the coming days.

The Assad regime intensified air raids on ISIS-held areas during the last days under the pretext of combatting terrorism, with many of the raids resulting in massacres among civilians.

This article was translated and edited by The Syrian Observer

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