Russia's bombing in Syria has killed hundreds of civilians - new report

Hospitals and residential areas hit.

Russian authorities appear to have fabricated information to deflect criticism.

Russian air strikes in Syria have killed hundreds of civilians and caused massive destruction in residential areas - striking homes, a mosque and a busy market, as well as medical facilities - in a pattern of attacks that show evidence of violations of international humanitarian law, said Amnesty International in a new report published today (23 December).

>>>>> Amnesty International is the source

Can I advise that commenters actually read the 26 page report (a PDF at the end), which is very insightful, depressing and contains evidenced sources.

I am posting this story to draw attention to the silence around Russian's Syrian adventure and the impact on civilians. I believe that the lack of a free press in Russia means that the Russian authorities can (and will) get away with running a dirty campaign in Syria. The outward-facing Russian state-controlled press (such as RT and Sputnik news et al) and the controls on internal press and TV reporting in Russia will whitewash Russian crimes, thus proving that ignorance is bliss.

The Russian state-controlled press is playing an efficient and effective distraction game by constantly focussing on the events in Turkey a month ago. This distraction is ensuring the growing tragedy of Russian actions are being unreported. In fact, I have checked and RT.com has reported no civilian deaths due to Russian actions, but in the same period has accused others of the said. Western media is barred from Syria and news is therefore slow to leak out.

The Western media has been a constant thorn in the side of US and coalition forces and have reported mistakes ad nauseam. This focus and criticism by the media and the ensuing public and political discontent has forced the military to adapt, and the rules of engagement appear to be highly cautious, to the extent that leaflets are sometimes dropped to warn of forthcoming airstrikes by the US and partners. The use of precision munitions and intelligence are standard. When mistakes happen this is reported and all the bad press drives change.

Russia is working without criticism or fear of redress. This means that the Russian military have greater latitude to make mistakes, or are less likely to factor-in civilian casualties, and can simply "get on with it", as they did in Chechnya where untold thousands perished. Russia uses unguided bombs and cluster munitions are used. There are reports that Russia is also using white phosphorous, which is very, very nasty. Note RT.com was very happy to report and criticise Israel for the same crime of allegedly using phosphorous and widely accused Ukraine of its use.

> Aljazeera report
> The Independent White phosphorous
> I B Times - Russia hits hospital
> Newsmax report
> Not a sausage from RT.com
> Press Freedom Index (Russia is 148th)

There are reports that Russia is also using white phosphorous, which is very, very nasty

As opposed to being blown up and becoming flying mince?

Anyway, what's your point here? AND what other way of WAR would you like? The nice clean surgical one the news normally portrays to you or would you like the raw truth?

War is terrible, War is death on a large scale. War is War?

Do you think the coalition go around knocking on doors making sure families and children are safely removed before they blast the crap out of a district?

I'm afraid you are as misguided as a Russian bomb if you truly believe that my friend.

a reply to: paraphi

I just listened to a interview on CBC with one of the team to the report . CBC asked about the US bombing and the guy said yes I plan on making a report soon on that . Lets see , US 1 1/2 year of bombing with little results and no report .Russia is knocking the snot out of ISIS in short order and the reports are starting . Where is the report on the Doctors without borders bombing in Afghanistan . Oh thats right it was the military that is creating that report ....Its a crazy war over there and its being fuled by Evil ME nations and helped by CIA/NATO operations through Turkey ....anyone paying attention knows this .

There was some coverage I saw on channel 4 news, harrowing images of innocent families fleeing Russian bombardments. They will be creating a new generation of jihadists and refugees. It seems most Syrians are in between an oppressive Assad regime Isis and Indescriminate Russian attacks. So I agree with your op, but there is clearly little sympathy for Syrian Rebels and the western can't really make up their minds what they want to do. It's a complicated messy situation that can hopefully come to some sort of resolution as soon as possible.

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a reply to: paraphi

The thing is that in western democracies, collectively killing everyone to get to a portion of scum deliberately hiding amongst civilians (deception is the art of war - Sun Tzu) would be met with an avalanche of protests across the political correction spectrum.

Russia is likely not concerned about the public fury and blowback and they will simply point to US military atrocities where similar tactics also resulted in the death of innocents.

If this is a deliberate tactic by Russia, the populations in the region should sit up and take note, because Russia may continue to employ this strategy of collective killing with the end result being scores of innocents dead as well as ALL the terrorists - it's a sure fire way of having the local populations weed out and expose the terrorists from within their midsts - if they want to live.

The loss of one innocent life is unacceptable to any sane person, so we must ask ourselves - what has led to Russia or indeed any outsider becoming involved in such a war in the first place? ISIS should reap the blame too for this tragedy, because it's due to their existence that this happened in the first place.

Now we wait to see who the first will be too call this Western propaganda. Ignoring the fact that Amnesty International has reported on human rights violations committed by the US many times.

a reply to: woodwardjnr

There was some coverage I saw on channel 4 news, harrowing images of innocent families fleeing Russian bombardments

Funny how there where no harrowing images of innocent families being bombed to bit when Western coalition forces bombed Iraq. An occupation that took some million lives. Mostly women and children..

a reply to: Sublimecraft

ISIS should reap the blame too for this tragedy, because it's due to their existence that this happened in the first place.

Russia done more damage to ISIS than the US done in years. Speaks volumes.

Trained by the US, armed through Turkey and controlled by Israel.

Putin talking about Russian US relations and makes claim about who created ISIS.



Russia does seem more serious about taking ISIS out.

The western PTB have always viewed ISIS as a positive thing, imo. Since ISIS are a threat to Iran's stability, which is of benefit to the wests political agenda.

a reply to: Xcalibur254

They get paid to do a job and without producing reports they would be out of a job ..Now how the report is translated becomes the work of propagandist and if they don't do their job the kids don't get Xmas gifts and daddy is is in the soup kitchen line . The boss always calls the shots .

a reply to: the2ofusr1

Well, the Russian state-controlled press are keen to push a particular view that they are the one's doing the damage against ISIS, because they cannot push a contrary view, could they?

However, for some months we have seen reports of many top and key ISIS leaders killed following airstrikes, the support for groups like the Kurds and the Iraqi forces who have pushed ISIS back, and airstrikes that according to US Intelligence had killed 6,000 ISIS fighters (at Jan 2015).

> Daily Fail Russians kill more civilians than ISIS fighters

a reply to: purplemer

Oh there were images realised and that guy gave them to Wikileaks and is doing a bunch of time for doing so . No wonder why Snowden to refuge in Russia , or he might have had the cell next door to anyone else that pointed to that Big Elephant in the room .

a reply to: paraphi

Both sides will take credit for things they have done and things they may not have done .Both sides will try and play down any mistakes they may have made as well . The Goal is to get rid of the terrorist operating in Iraq and Syria . That is one chicken nobody wants to come home to roost . nobody . Bush said himself that better to fight them there then here so ..just saying .

It would help alot if the US, Turkey and EU members stopped supporting IS.

You know, all this could have been avoided by large if not the chant mantra Syrian government must die and perhaps we would not even heard about these Daesh/ISIL groups at all. Stop playing the game of wars and we could be solving the problems together rather than creating problems that will spiral out of control and then point fingers and keep watching as families gets destroyed left and right.
At this point thou, what can be done? We all perhaps feel that all this mess could spawn war that wont end till those big bad bombas are flying all around the world. As it is no side want to back off because every side has invested so much to it and same reasoning perhaps goes with saying why these leaders do not want to do the right thing for change.

a reply to: paraphi
War is ugly.
Whole cities in Germany and Japan were burned to the ground in WWII.
With precision guided munitions vaunted as a way of protecting the lives of noncombatants during the first Gulf War, people have some idea that only soldiers will be killed.
Civilians are still raped and executed after the victors take over an area nowadays. Don't let TPTB's hype fool you.

It happens, and yes it sucks.
But it's not quite as bad as the west bombing doctors without borders for over half an hour AFTER they KNEW what was going on.

a reply to: JHumm

They were trying to cover their tracks.

Being a member of AI, I always have a need to watch their propriety in all things, they have made serious mistakes in the past and continue to do so as basically a reporting agency and lobbyist platform, however it's still an alternative to what is covered on the TV screens. The trouble comes when so often a reported situation is easily criticised as being in bias with one side or the other, and frankly, if you are so remote to what is going on, it's a scramble to find alternative reporting to make some sense of balance, while so often there is none.
For this thread I would just say that collateral damage is always present, anywhere and in any war, by any side, as are cover ups, but also a need for caution in regard to the written word.

EXample below from the preamble,

'The report includes evidence suggesting that Russian authorities may have lied to cover up civilian damage to a mosque from one air strike and a field hospital in another. It also documents evidence suggesting Russia’s use of internationally-banned cluster munitions and of unguided bombs in populated residential areas.'

Elsewhere you will find the words suspected of or similar.

In the actual report you will find this,

'Between September and December 2015, Amnesty International researched remotely more
than 25 attacks'
However, also in the report, it says that Russia directly targeted civilians, without qualification of any kind.

Who's fault is it that this accidental event happened? Is it Russia's or the people who actually started the conflict? If it is ISIS who they were bombing, it is ISIS who caused this to happen. In the wars of the past there were tons of civilian casualties, who's fault was it, it actually was the one who started the war's fault.

The innocent people dying in the military bombings over the last ten years have actually been really light. ISIS has killed a lot of innocent people though. So have a lot of the other radical groups like Al Qaeda.

It would be nice if none of this was happening but in wars, many civilians usually die in war zones.