The Syrian Network for Human Rights published a study titled "The Holocaust of the Community", documenting massacres which show patterns of sectarian or ethnic violations in Syria. The report documented 56 sectarian massacres committed since March 2011; 49 of the incidents were reportedly carried out by government forces, while armed groups and armed opposition factions were responsible for four other mass killings.
According to the report, government forces were responsible for killing 3,074 people in sectarian massacres, where only 70 of the victims were classified as militants while just over 3,000 were civilians, including 526 children, and 471 women. The province of Homs topped the list with more than 22 massacres, while Aleppo and Hama witnessed eight and seven massacres, respectively. The report documented that government forces also committed five massacres in the countryside of Damascus, two in each of Idleb, Tartous and Daraa, and one in Deir-ez-Zor.
The report also states that armed opposition factions, including the Nusra Front and the Islamic State (ISIS), committed four sectarian massacres claiming the lives of 178 people, including 26 children and 72 women.
According to the report, ISIS committed three sectarian massacres causing the deaths of 58 people, including 13 children and 15 women.
The report also mentioned massacres carried out by the Kurdish forces against Arab civilians, noting that they are ethnic massacres and not of a sectarian nature, since the Kurdish forces include fighters from several communities. The report also documented three ethnic massacres committed by the Kurdish forces in the province of Hassakeh, claiming the lives of 91 civilians, including 17 children and seven women.
Translated and edited by The Syrian Observer
