East Ghouta is a district on northeastern Damascus, the capital of Syria. The region, an oasis formed by the Barada river, has long been used for agricultural development. During the 1980s, the area began industrializing, with much of the agricultural area replaced with housing and industrial facilities. With a population of about two million (before the war) of primarily conservative Sunnis, the region was among the first to rebel against Bashar al-Assad’s government. It was besieged starting in May 2013, with little to no outside aid getting in in the time since then. East Ghouta has seen some of the worst atrocities which have transpired in the war in Syria since 2011.
UN OPCW investigators in East Ghouta following the 2013 sarin attack
On 21 August 2013, two chemical attacks took place in Ghouta, one each in the Western and Eastern parts of the city. In West Ghouta, several 140mm M-14 surface-to-surface rockets were fired from government-quarters into an opposition-held area. East Ghouta was hit by several suspected 120mm Grad rockets. Both volleys contained chemical warheads, spreading a cloud of sarin around the target areas, which included both opposition fighters and many civilians. The death toll ranges(1) from 400-1,500. Since then, a steady barrage of barrel bombs, rockets, conventional military munitions, and occasional chlorine gas usage have become regular. Yet the people of Ghouta have endured, a sore spot sticking out in Assad’s capital. On 18 February 2018, Assad began an operation to clear the pesky pocket once and for all.
There are absolutely some sections of East Ghouta under control of the formerly al Qaeda-aligned Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the vast majority are in the hands of non-terrorist opposition groups. Combining land-based artillery with Russian Air Force (RuAF) and Syrian Arab Air Force (SyAAF) strikes, at least 94 civilians were killed on East Ghouta on the first day from the intense bombardment.
2018 rif dimashq offensive order of battle | syrian government and allies
- Syrian Arab Army (SAA)
- Republican Guard
- 104th Airborne Brigade
- 105th Brigade
- 106th Brigade
- Tiger Forces
- 14th Special Forces Division
- 1st Corps
- 7th Mechanized Division
- 9th Armored Corps
- 2nd Corps
- 4th Armored Division
- 42nd Armored Brigade
- 10th Mechanized Division
- 62nd Mechanized Brigade
- 4th Armored Division
- Republican Guard
- National Defense Forces
- Syrian Arab Air Force (SyAAF)
- Russian Armed Forces
- Russian Aerospace Forces
2018 rif dimashq offensive order of battle | syrian opposition
- Jaysh al-Islam
- Military Council of Damascus and its Suburbs
- Al-Rahman Legion
- Al-Bara Brigade
- Glory Brigades
- Abu Musa al-Shari Brigade
- Ajnad al-Sham Islamic Union
- Al-Habib al-Mustafa Brigade
- 101st Battalion
- Ahrar al-Sham
- Fajr al-Umma Brigade
- Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham
A street in East Ghouta (courtesy Middle East Monitor)
By the time of this writing, over 500 civilians have been killed in the bombardment. On Saturday, February 24th the United Nations Security Council called for an immediate ceasefire (UNSCR 2401) throughout the whole of Syria (including in the Turkish-besieged region of Afrin), with the exception of those fighting UN-designated terrorist groups like Daesh and Jabhat al-Nusra (HTS). The SAA and its allies have utilized napalm, white phosphorus, vacuum bombs, barrel bombs, chlorine gas, TOS-1 thermobaric flamethrowers, BM-21 Grads (and other MLRS), surface-to-surface ballistic missiles, mine-clearing charges, and other weapons of indiscriminate destruction.
Surrender is not much of an option for the people of Ghouta. Their fate would likely mirror the fate of those who surrendered in East Aleppo, which the UN described as such:
A/HRC/34/64
25. On both sides of the city, civilians paid the highest price for the brutality of violence that assailed Aleppo. In eastern Aleppo, pro-Government forces pummeled vital civilian infrastructure, with disastrous consequences. Day after day, hospitals, markets, water
stations, schools and residential buildings were razed to the ground. Fearing bombardments, civilians avoided hospitals, including pregnant women, who increasingly gave birth at home without medical assistance or opted for caesareans to avoid hours in labour in
hospital. In western Aleppo, civilians lived in fear of indiscriminate and deliberate shelling by armed groups. Throughout Aleppo, bombardments of residential buildings disproportionately affected those who typically spent more time at home: women and
children.31. Hospitals, ambulances and medical personnel are afforded special protection under international humanitarian law (see annex I, para. 36). While they may be made the object of attack when used for military purposes, such attacks require prior warning (ibid., para.
39). In the incidents investigated by the Commission, however, there was no indication of the presence of military targets or of warnings being issued prior to attack. The display of an emblem to signify a location’s protected status is not required in conflicts where
hospitals are deliberately targeted (ibid.).32. Repeated bombardments, lack of warnings and the absence of military presence in the vicinity of the health-care facilities strongly suggest the deliberate and systematic targeting of medical infrastructure as part of a strategy to compel surrender, amounting to the war crime of intentionally targeting protected objects (ibid., paras. 36-39). Furthermore, deliberate attacks against medical staff and ambulances amount to the war crimes of intentionally attacking medical personnel and transport (ibid., para. 39).
35. Further allegations regarding the use of chemicals (likely chlorine) on 1 October are also supported by victim accounts. One ambulance worker described how he and others experienced difficulty breathing after a bomb with a “strong smell” was dropped. Others described seeing yellow powder, which is consistent with chlorine residue. Images of the aftermath show remnants of a PTAB-1M cluster munition carried by an RBK-500 cluster bomb containing 268 sub-munitions. The presence of an improvised air-delivered munition
with a chemical payload strongly suggests that the attack was conducted by government forces. In addition to the war crime of intentionally targeting protected objects, the attack amounts to the war crime of indiscriminate attacks against the civilian population (see annex I, paras. 20-23).41. Repeated attacks against markets, bakeries and other food sources indispensable for civilian life have been a hallmark of the prolonged siege laid to eastern Aleppo city, violating the right to regular, permanent and unrestricted access to sufficient food (see snnex I, para. 11). The total number of markets and bakeries attacked from the air during the period under review is indicative of a pattern on the part of pro-Government forces of intentionally violating this right by targeting civilian infrastructure in order to compel the
surrender of armed groups (ibid., para. 35).44. During the period under review, the lack of potable water drastically reduced the access of Syrian men, women and children to sanitation and hygiene, and increased the risk of infectious and waterborne diseases. The human right to water, indispensable for leading a life in human dignity, is an essential prerequisite to the realization of all other human rights (see annex I, para. 12).
48. During the period under review, air strikes carried out by Syrian and Russian forces had a disparate impact on educational institutions throughout eastern Aleppo city, where a third of the population were children (see annex I, paras. 13-15). Schools may only be the
object of attack when used for military purposes, and such attacks require prior warning when the school is located in a densely populated civilian area (ibid., para. 22).52. The Commission investigated numerous incidents of allegations of improvised chlorine bombs dropped from helicopters, which resulted in civilian casualties. In none of the incidents reviewed did information gathered suggest the involvement of Russian forces. Given that the incidents reported were all the result of air-delivered bombs, it is concluded that these attacks were carried out by Syrian air forces. The use of chlorine by Syrian forces follows a pattern observed in 2014 and 2015 (see S/2016/738).
79. On 19 September, in Orum al-Kubra (western Aleppo governorate), a United Nations/SARC convoy was attacked by air, killing at least 14 civilian aid workers and injuring at least 15 others. The attack also destroyed 17 trucks and, with them, food,
medicine, children’s clothes and other supplies destined for families in western Aleppo governorate controlled by armed groups, including Atarib and Ibbeen. The attack began shortly after the General Command of the Syrian Armed Forces issued a statement
declaring an end to the ceasefire in place since 12 September. After the attack, the United Nations announced a suspension of all aid convoys in the Syrian Arab Republic.87. Early warning reports, satellite imagery, witness testimony, forensic evidence gathered at the site and data provided by Member States are consistent with the use of air-delivered munitions and implicate Syrian forces in the attack. Syrian Su-24M strike aircraft
and at least one and possibly two Syrian Mi-8 attack helicopters were operating in and around Orum al-Kubra at the time of the attack. No coalition aircraft employed weapons within 50 kilometres of the attack, and no Russian strike aircraft were nearby during the
attack.88. The types of munitions used, the breadth of the area targeted and the duration of the attack strongly suggest that the attack was meticulously planned and ruthlessly carried out by the Syrian air force to purposefully hinder the delivery of humanitarian aid and target aid workers, constituting the war crimes of deliberately attacking humanitarian relief personnel, denial of humanitarian aid and targeting civilians (see annex I, paras. 34-35).
89. 27 November marked the beginning of territorial gains by pro-Government forces in eastern Aleppo. Upon taking control of northern districts, pro-Government forces separated women from men, with the latter subjected to screenings and those identified as fighters
transferred to detention centres. Syrian forces conscripted many of the remaining men (see annex I, para. 52), and transferred some 5,000 people to a camp in Jibreen. People were again screened in Jibreen, and at least one man was subsequently arrested. His whereabouts
remains unknown (ibid., para. 28-30).90. Reports of violations continued to emerge in early December as internally displaced persons crossed into Government-controlled areas. Humanitarian workers and medical and civil defence staff reported a greater risk of arrest for being perceived as a supporter of an armed group. In early December, pro-Government forces arrested three humanitarian workers and several Jabal Bedro residents perceived to be supporters of armed groups. On
13 December, a doctor and his wife were arbitrarily arrested at a checkpoint. Reports of forced conscription continued to emerge; the single largest recruitment took place on 11 December, when a group of approximately 200 men aged between 19 and 25 were forcibly
conscripted after crossing with their families into western Aleppo.91. From late November until evacuations were completed in December, some pro-Government forces carried out executions in reprisal. These included cases of Syrian soldiers killing their own relatives who were supporters of armed groups. Pro-Government
forces also executed an armed group commander’s wife and daughter while they attempted to cross into western Aleppo. In December, relatives of fighters of the Free Syrian Army,
including women and elderly, were reportedly killed in Bustan al-Qasr.92. During the mid-December evacuations, pro-Government forces stopped and handcuffed three armed group fighters rendered hors de combat. A fourth fighter fired shots as they tried to apprehend him, prompting the soldiers to shoot all four men. During the evacuations, some pro-Government forces again conscripted men and boys as young as 16 years (ibid., para. 53), and pillaged evacuee property, including money, jewellery, laptops and mobile phones (ibid., para. 31).
93. After the Government reached an evacuation agreement with armed groups in mid-December, residents of eastern Aleppo were transported from the city in government buses and private vehicles to Idlib, while others fled to western Aleppo. None had the option to
remain in their home. As part of the agreement, more than 1,000 people were evacuated from Foah and Kafraya and went to Aleppo, Tartous, Homs and Latakia governorates. As warring parties agreed to the evacuation of eastern Aleppo for strategic reasons – and not
for the security of civilians or imperative military necessity, which permit the displacement of thousands – the Aleppo evacuation agreement amounts to the war crime of forced displacement (ibid., paras. 50-51)
Assad’s forces launched a ground offensive just hours after the UN ceasefire was called, on the morning of 25 February. Thus far, opposition forces have held their lines rather well, but it is likely that the city will fall to the combined pressure of the Syrian government and its allies. What will follow will likely be another round of forced deportation, in effect ethnic cleansing, with many thousands imprisoned and/or killed. We have discussed the United Nations with regards to Syria in depth before, as well as the process of working around Russia’s veto at the Security Council.
(1) “Attacks on Ghouta: Analysis of Alleged Use of Chemical Weapons in Syria .” Human Rights Watch. September 2013. Accessed February 26, 2018. https://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/reports/syria_cw0913_web_1.pdf.
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