Bayda and Baniyas massacres
The Bayda and Baniyas massacres were two massacres that took place in May 2013 in the community of al-Bayda and the city of Baniyas , in the Tartus district , Syria . Pro-Assad troops, supported by paramilitaries, reportedly killed civilians in the Sunni village and the Sunni part of the city. The murders took place in the course of the civil war in Syria .
The killings allegedly were in retaliation for an earlier rebel attack near the city that left at least half a dozen soldiers dead. There have been reports of entire families who perished in the two massacres on May 2nd and 3rd, as well as thousands who tried to flee the area. At least 100 people were killed, some sources also report more than 400 deaths. Survivors testified that regular troops escorted by the paramilitary National Defense Force (NDF) came into the village and a murderous attack began, including looting and burning of houses.
Events
Soldiers killed
Early on May 2, 2013, rebels fought with government forces near Bayda. Activists reported that a bus carrying pro-government militias known as Shabiha was attacked. Seven of them were killed and 20–30 injured. Then Syrian troops and Shabiha militiamen attacked from the area in the afternoon and stormed the village.
Assault on the village
Syrian troops escorted by pro-government militias stormed into the village in the mountains near the Mediterranean coast, killing dozens of people, including women and children, and burning their homes. Before the militias entered the village, the military fired rockets at Bayda from the sea.
The UK's Syrian Human Rights Observatory said at least 50 people - and possibly 100 - were killed in the process. Witnesses said that some of the dead were only killed with knives or blunt objects, and that dozens of villagers are still missing. SOHR later stated they were able to document the deaths of 51 people. An activist report documented 72 deaths. Opposition activists said that in Bayda there were only 14 rebels in the village at the time. One opposition leader said the attack could also be in retaliation for another attack in a neighboring area 4 days earlier that resulted in the deaths of several soldiers.
The massacre in Baniyas
On May 3rd, according to SOHR, there was another massacre in the Ras al-Nabaa district of Baniyas that caused hundreds of Sunni residents to flee their homes. According to an opposition report, a total of 77 civilians, including 14 children, were killed. Two opposition groups used the names to document 96 and 145 people who were executed in the district. Four pro-government militias and two soldiers were also killed in clashes with rebels in the area.
The state media reported that the armed forces had only cleared the area of "terrorists". Mihraç Ural , a pro-government commander of the militia, spoke of the need to besiege the city and of the "purge" of Baniya from the "traitors". The military itself spoke of 40 terrorists who were killed in Bayda and Baniyas.
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b Syria: Sunni village 'massacred' in Alawaite heartland
- ^ The Guardian, May 4, 2013
- ↑ http://www.economist.com/news/middle-east-and-africa/21577394-things-go-bad-horrendous-big-outside-powers-call-talks Syria's civil war: The bloody stalemate persists
- ↑ [1]
- ↑ a b Sectarian killings reported in Syrian village ( Memento from May 7, 2013 in the Internet Archive )
- ^ Syrian troops storm "massacre" village
- ^ Dozens killed in Syria's Banias
- ↑ Ryan Lucas: Dozens Killed By Assad Troops In Bayda Massacre, Syrian Activists Say . In: Huffington Post , 05/02/13.
- ↑ a b Sectarian violence reported in Syrian city of Baniyas
- ↑ Syrian dictator Assad 'massacres up to 100 men, women and children' with knives and guns as US says arming rebels is now an option
- ↑ opposition accuses Syria regime of massacre in coastal region
- ↑ a b Syrians flee 'massacres' in Baniyas and al-Bayda
- ↑ At least 62 bodies found in Syria's Banias: watchdog
- ↑ Syrians flee coastal town after mass killings
- ^ VDC Martyrs
- ^ Pro-regime militant speaks of “cleansing” Banias
- ↑ Syrian activists document al-Bayda and Baniyas 'massacre'