Assassinations in opposition areas during the period from January to June 2021
Executive summary:
This report monitors the assassination operations carried out within the areas under the control of the opposition military factions in northern Syria, during the period from January to June 2021, which amounted to 70 operations, leaving 342 victims.
The monitoring process in various regions shows the use of multiple tools in carrying out the assassinations, as 36 operations were carried out through improvised explosive devices, gunshots were used in 19 operations, while 15 attempts were carried out through booby-trapped transport vehicles.
The nature of the operations in the northwestern countryside of Aleppo continues, ranging from selective operations targeting specific people, to indiscriminate operations targeting military groups amid civilian gatherings, and operations targeting purely civilian gatherings such as markets.
The Euphrates Shield areas recorded the largest percentage of assassinations during monitoring compared to the rest of the areas, while the Afrin area recorded the highest percentage of civilian casualties, as a result of the nature of the operations and implementation tools used within them.
Idlib and its environs recorded a decrease in the rate of assassinations, in contrast to the multiplicity of targeting and executing parties, amid a complex security environment.
Despite the relatively low rate of assassinations in Idlib; However, the operations carried out were selective, relied on bullets and explosive devices, and targeted military leaders and civilian actors.
The current report notes an increase in the pace of operations against Turkish forces in Idlib, in return for the emergence of new groups that are adopting these operations, which indicates that targeting the Turkish presence in Syria through security work is escalating systematically and deliberately.
The monitored data show a clear activity of the "Wrath of Olives Operations Room" and the "Afrin Liberation Forces", in the areas of "Peace Spring" and Afrin in particular, through the public adoption of the assassinations carried out in those areas.
The rate of assassinations and the nature of their targets are not only an indication of the inability of the security formations of the controlling forces to control security and stability for civilians but also indicate their weak ability to secure and protect their members.
The general reading of the data indicates more weakness in the security situation in all the monitored areas within northern Syria, in contrast to the weak ability of the active forces and their failure to limit these operations, which contribute to the decline in security and stability indicators at various levels.
You can read the full report in Arabic
