A body being exhumed by civil defense workers in Raqqa
The bodies of over 1,200 civilians, the majority of whom are women and children, were found buried in three mass graves in Syria’s Raqqa, according to local sources.
A video published on the official Twitter account of the Raqqa Civil Council's Reconstruction Committee showed bodies being extracted from mass graves.
“Nearly 1,236 bodies have so far been exhumed from three mass graves that were uncovered in Raqqa, not including those buried under the rubble of homes and undisclosed locations,” a caption accompanying the photo reads.
نحو 1236 جثة انتشلها #فريق_الاستجابة_الأولية حتى اللحظة من 3 مقابر جماعية اكتشفj في #الرقة.. هذا عدا عن الجثث المدفونة تحت أنقاض المنازل وفي أماكن لم يتم التعرف عليها بعد..
تفاصيل أكثر في هذا الـ #فيديو#لجنة_إعادة_الأعمار #مجلس_الرقة_المدني pic.twitter.com/d0ergJ1v9K
They’re said to have been all killed during the U.S.-led coalition’s ferocious aerial campaign against Daesh terrorists in the region, which turned the city of Raqqa to rubble.
Amnesty International, a human rights group, previously warned, attacks by the U.S.-led coalition against Daesh in Syria’s Raqqa last year violated international law by endangering civilian lives.
Back in April, photos showing workers extracting bodies from mass graves were posted on social media platforms.
War of Annihilation
An explosive 70-page report released by Amnesty Internatıonal back in June, titled “War of Annihilation”: Devastating Toll on Civilians, Raqqa – Syria, revealed the shocking extent of the destruction U.S.-led coalition forces have wrecked upon the city, which left thousands of civilians dead and injured.
The report went on to reveal that four families lost at least 90 of their relatives and neighbors in the aftermath of U.S. bombardment on Raqqa.
In June, the Coalition finally admitted to killing more than 40 civilians in airstrikes that targeted a school in Raqqa’s al-Mansourah in March 2017.
The Human Rights Watch (HRW) had previously reported the case in September 2017, which was then denied by the U.S.-led coalition, keeping the report classified as “non-credible” for 15 months after it initially surfaced.
Raqqa was delivered to PKK/PYD terrorists
A BBC report titled “Raqqa’s dirty secret” exposed a secret deal with the U.S. that enabled hundreds of Daesh terrorists to flee Syria’s Raqqa.
In October, hundreds of Daesh terrorists escaped from Raqqa following a deal with the U.S. and the Kurdistan Worker’s Party (PKK)/Democratic Union Party (PYD). The report says that the convoy included some of the terrorist organization’s “most notorious members and dozens of foreign fighters. Some of those have spread out across Syria, even making it as far as Turkey.”
The report said that aircraft, including drones, followed the convoy. “When the last of the convoy were about to cross, a U.S. jet flew very low and deployed flares to light up the area,” it added.
The Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK)’s Syrian affiliate, the YPG, has started to imprison members of the Jabhat Thuwar al-Raqqa, also known as the Front of Raqqa Revolutionaries and made up of Arabs who revolted against the occupation of Raqqa, flouting an agreement between the two.According to local sources, the YPG/PKK, which previously cooperated with the Raqqa Revolutionaries under the cover of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), broke its resistance after a 72-hour curfew.According to the agreement, the YPG/PKK would take over the headquarters of the group in Raqqa and some of its members would be relocated to the Takba district. However, the PKK/YPG terror group detained its members, including its commander, Ebu İsa.To detain members of the Raqqa Revolutionaries in its countryside, the YPG/PKK has constructed numerous of control points.The PKK has kidnapped youngsters, forcing them to take up arms, looted homes and seized properties in Raqqa.The YPG was among the U.S.-backed SDF to take Raqqa from Daesh. The U.S. has supported the SDF, which consists of the PKK/PYD and other groups, in fighting Daesh in Syria but has largely ignored its links to the PKK.
PKK/YPG imprisons Arabs in Syria’s Raqqa
As Syrian regions liberated from terror by the Turkish Armed Forces (TAF) joined in on celebrations following Turkey’s elections, twenty terrorists were killed and dozens others injured after heavy clashes erupted in the city of Raqqa between factions of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party terror group.Conflict took place between Arab militia Thuwwar al-Raqqa, which joined the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) in 2015, and the Democratic Union Party (PYD), the Syrian offshoot of the PKK terror group.All attempts at mediation by the U.S. and France in an effort to put an end to the conflict in Raqqa have so far proven unsuccessful.Reinforcements dispatched from Hasakah As clashes intensified in Raqqa, PKK terrorists imposed a general curfew in the city, after civilians took to the streets to protest against the terror group in Raqqa and its vicinity. Three civilians were killed and eight women were wounded after PKK terrorists opened fire on a protest in al-Battani. PKK terrorists summoned reinforcements from the Hasakah cities of Qamishli and Yaroubiyah, threatening to bomb residential neighborhoods if clashes continued.The PKK is listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the European Union and the United States. The PKK has been conducting armed violence in the southeastern part of Turkey since 1984. More than 40,000 people, mostly civilians, have been killed in the three-decade long conflict.Over 400 civilians held hostage by PKK Hundreds of civilians in Raqqa’s city center and its outskirts are trapped due to the ongoing clashes in the region. Over 400 civilians who came from numerous towns to visit relatives in the city are said to be held hostage by PKK terrorists. Among those trapped is the infant son of the commander of the Thuwwar al-Raqqa Brigade Abu Issa. Thousands of civilians are currently under siege by the PKK in the region under the pretext of resistance against possible conflict in Raqqa, banning the entry of all food and medical supplies into the city, in addition to suspending all humanitarian aid activities.Free Syrian Army celebrates Erdoğan’s election victoryUS, Turkey focus on second phase of Manbij Roadmap
Twenty terrorists killed in PKK infighting in Syria’s Raqqa