Barrel bombings emerge as new tactic in Syrian civil war

(Liz Sly/ The Washington Post ) - Carpenter Abu Hussein, 4 , !le" the "e#astating barrel bo$bing %a$paign in the Syrian %ity o! Aleppo&

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By Liz Sly, Published: February 15 E-mail the writer

'(L(S, Tur)ey * The Syrians +ho rea%h this Tur)ish bor"er to+n a!ter es%aping the northern %ity o! Aleppo bring stories o! horror about e,plo"ing barrels that !all !ro$ the s)y& The +orst part is the terri!ying anti%ipation as the barrel bo$bs are unleashe" !ro$ +arplanes roaring o#erhea", sai" one $an +ho !le" a!ter three bo$bs "e$olishe" the street +here he +as li#ing& The sight o! res%uers s%raping hu$an re$ains !ro$ the si"e+al) outsi"e her ho$e pro$pte" another o! the re!ugees to lea#e& A thir" Syrian, a gran"$other, sai" she le!t si$ply be%ause li!e ha" be%o$e unsustainable in the +re%)e", rubble-stre+n %ity, +here entire neighborhoo"s ha#e been al$ost %o$pletely "epopulate"& -Aleppo is e$pty,. she sai" as she sat surroun"e" by luggage an" %hil"ren a!ter arri#ing in Tur)ey this +ee)& -There/s no one le!t * no shops, no $ar)ets, no li!e at all&. As pea%e tal)s in 0ene#a en"e" in "ea"lo%) Satur"ay, +ith 1&2& $e"iator La)h"ar 3rahi$i setting no "ate !or their resu$ption, the Syrian go#ern$ent/s barrel bo$bing %a$paign against the rebel-hel" hal! o! Aleppo o!!ers a gli$pse o! +hat $ay lie ahea" !or the %ountry no+ that negotiations ha#e !aile"& The %a$paign, +hi%h began in 4e%e$ber, intensi!ie" as the pea%e tal)s got un"er+ay last $onth, un"erlining one o! the biggest i$pe"i$ents to a negotiate" settle$ent, sai" Sal$an Shai)h o! the 3roo)ings 4oha Center in 5atar& -The regi$e !eels it %an +in this on the battle!iel" an" they !eel they %an +in this politi%ally,. gi#ing it little in%enti#e to %o$pro$ise in the pea%e tal)s, he sai"& See$ingly unli$ite" barrels 6#er the past +ee), the atta%)s rea%he" a ne+ pea), triggering a !resh e,o"us o! pani%)e" people into the surroun"ing %ountrysi"e an" a%ross the bor"er into Tur)ey& The barrels * %ru"e %ylin"ers stu!!e" +ith T2T that are being tippe" out o! +arplanes at the rate o! 7 a "ay * ha#e )ille" hun"re"s an" in8ure" thousan"s& They are al$ost all being "roppe" o#er resi"ential areas, an" though they la%) pre%ision, they are syste$ati%ally hitting one neighborhoo" a!ter another, suggesting an intent to "ri#e people out, resi"ents say& 3arrel bo$bs are also in%reasingly being "eploye" in other rebel stronghol"s aroun" Syria, bringing a ne+ "i$ension to the #iolen%e o! a +ar alrea"y reno+ne" !or its brutality& 1nli)e the sarin gas an" ballisti% $issiles that the go#ern$ent o! Syrian Presi"ent 3ashar al-Assa" has pre#iously "eploye" to %rush the rebellion, barrel bo$bs are %heap an" easy to $anu!a%ture !ro$ rea"ily a#ailable %o$ponents, an" the go#ern$ent has a see$ingly unli$ite" supply& They are also po+er!ul enough to "e$olish apart$ent buil"ings, obliterate ho$es an" in%inerate people, an" their steppe"-up use has been the pri$ary %ause o! a sharp in%rease in "eaths in Syria o#er the past three +ee)s& The Syrian 6bser#atory !or Hu$an 9ights esti$ates that :,4 people ha#e been )ille" sin%e the 0ene#a tal)s began, $a)ing the $ore than three +ee)s sin%e -the $ost %on%entrate" perio" o! )illing in the entire "uration o! the %on!li%t,. a%%or"ing to Sa$antha Po+er, the 1&S& a$bassa"or to the 1nite" 2ations& The en" o! the +orl"/ (n Aleppo, Syria/s !or$er %o$$er%ial %apital an" a )ey strategi% prize, the go#ern$ent appears to be pushing !or the )in" o! su%%esses that it has a%hie#e" else+here by $a)ing li!e untenable !or or"inary people, sai" A$r Al Az$, a history pro!essor at Sha+nee State 1ni#ersity in 6hio& That, in turn, puts pressure on opposition !ighters to sub$it to %ease-!ire "eals si$ilar to those that ha#e pa%i!ie" se#eral suburbs o! 4a$as%us in re%ent $onths, as +ell as the re%ent agree$ent that brought ai" to the %enter o! Ho$s&

-They/re going about "estroying popular support !or the opposition by essentially "estroying the area o#er the hea"s o! the %i#ilians,. sai" Az$, +ho is Syrian an" supports the opposition& A%%or"ing to Syrians +ho ha#e %rosse" into Tur)ey, hauling the !e+ possessions they $anage" to grab, the barrels are bringing the %ity to its )nees& -( %an/t e#en begin to tal) about it,. sai" a +hite-!a%e" +o$an +ho slu$pe" onto the groun" near the bor"er gate& She ha" 8ust %o$plete" a 74-hour 8ourney !errying her three s$all %hil"ren an" their possessions, +hi%h +ere stu!!e" into t+o s$all sa%)s an" a garbage bag& -The "oors !le+ in& The "oors !le+ in,. she repeate" o#er an" o#er, "es%ribing the $o$ent a barrel bo$b stru%) her buil"ing& Carpenter Abu Hussein, 4 , pile" $attresses, blan)ets, pots an" pans into his %ar an" "ro#e out o! Aleppo earlier this +ee), na#igating piles o! $asonry !ro$ bo$be" buil"ings an" la)es o! +ater !ro$ burst pipes in neighborhoo"s e$ptie" o! inhabitants& -(t/s li)e the en" o! the +orl",. he sai"& -The only people le!t are the poorest o! the poor, an" they are 8ust +aiting !or "eath&. -Assa" +ill )ill e#eryone in or"er to stay in his position, an" $aybe +e shoul" let hi$,. he sai", e,pressing a #ie+ in%reasingly share" e#en by Syrians +ho oppose his rule& -(t pains $e to say it, an" it "oesn/t $ean ( thin) he is not a +ar %ri$inal& 3ut anything to $a)e this stop&. (n a hospital be" in 'ilis, ;oha$$e" Ab"o, : , re%ounte" the a!ter$ath o! the barrel bo$bing that sent shrapnel into the le!t si"e o! his hea" as he +as "ri#ing into Aleppo& He lost %ons%iousness !or se#eral $inutes, then a+o)e to s%enes o! grueso$e horror gli$pse" through the bloo" strea$ing "o+n his !a%e& -( sa+ bo"y parts all o#er the street& There +as a bo"y hanging !ro$ the ele%tri%ity %ables& There +ere in8ure" people e#ery+here,. he sai"& -3ut only a !e+ people +ere helping the$, be%ause e#eryone is a!rai" to go outsi"e&. As the %a$paign %ontinues, #ital ser#i%es su%h as health %are are brea)ing "o+n, sai" Ab"o, +ho +as brought to Tur)ey by a relati#e be%ause Aleppo/s !e+ !un%tioning hospitals +ere too busy to treat hi$& -(t/s an absolute "isaster in those streets,. he sai"& (n e,ile The nu$ber o! "aily %asualties is !alling, ho+e#er, as entire neighborhoo"s e$pty, "o%tors say& Hun"re"s o! thousan"s o! people ha#e !le" into the surroun"ing %ountrysi"e, a%%or"ing to the Syrian opposition, an" the 1nite" 2ations says an a""itional 7 , ha#e arri#e" in Tur)ey, the biggest in!lu, in $ore than a year& The e,ile brings a ne+ or"eal< !in"ing shelter an" !oo" in a strange lan"& There is no roo$ le!t in the %a$ps Tur)ey has built, an" $ost o! the ne+ arri#als are le!t to loo) a!ter the$sel#es& 4iaa A"een, =>, la$ente" that she "i" not )no+ +here she, her !our "aughters an" si,

gran"%hil"ren +oul" sleep that night, but she then bro)e into a s$ile& -Than) 0o" +e are sa!e,. she sai"& -(t is +orth it not to hear the soun" o! those planes in the s)y&.