Syrian Coalition: The Regime’s Revenge Attacks on East Ghouta Were Stirred by its Defeat in Mleiha

Mohammad Khair Al-Wazir, member of the Syrian Coalition, said that breaking the siege imposed by regime forces on Mleiha in East Ghouta, the gateway to East Ghouta, will set the stage for liberating more areas in rural Damascus. The breaking of the siege was the outcome of high-level coordination among the rebel factions that carried out a daring and surprising offensive against regime positions encircling the town. Stunned by the rebels’ sudden attack, regime forces retaliated by randomly shelling residential areas in Kafrbatna and Douma, killing at least 45 civilians and injuring dozens more.” Al Wazir also said that the Assad regime has been deliberately targeting civilians to put pressure on rebel fighters since the early days of the revolution whenever his forces suffer a setback. In light of the regime’s ongoing attacks against the rebellious cities and towns, we call on human rights organizations to assume their responsibilities towards the people of East Ghouta and put pressure on the Assad regime to force it to lift the siege imposed on hundreds of thousands of civilians. We also call upon the international community to pressure the Assad regime to abide by the UN Security Council resolution No. 2165 concerning the entry of relief aid to the besieged areas without the consent of the Assad regime.”

(Source: Syrian Coalition / 05.08.2014)