Siege of Eastern Ghouta
Part of the Rif Dimashq Governorate campaign,
and the Syrian civil war

Aerial bombardment of Eastern Ghouta by the Syrian Air Force on 8 February 2018
Date7 April 2013[1] – 14 April 2018[2][3][4]
(5 years and 1 week)
Location
Eastern Ghouta, Rif Dimashq Governorate, Syria
Result

Syrian Army and allies victory

Territorial
changes		 Syrian Army captures the rebel-held Eastern Ghouta pocket[6][7]
Belligerents

Jaysh al-Islam Surrendered[8]
Al-Rahman Legion Surrendered[1]
Ahrar al-Sham Surrendered[1]
Tahrir al-Sham Surrendered[1]
Free Syrian Army  Surrendered

Jaysh al-Ummah Surrendered (2014–15)

Syrian Arab Republic

 Iran
 Russia (since 2015)
Allied militias:
Hezbollah
Palestinian Syrian militias
LAAG
Arab Nationalist Guard[9]
Liwa Fatemiyoun[10]
Lions of Hussein[11]

Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (2013 – July 2014)[12]

  • Ansar al-Sharia (Allegedly, by al-Nusra)[13]
Commanders and leaders

Zahran Alloush †

Essam al-Buwaydhani Surrendered
Abdul al-Nasr Shamir Surrendered		 Syria Colonel Ghayath Dalla
Syria Suheil al-Hassan		 Unknown
Units involved

Jaysh al-Islam

  • Military Council of Damascus and its Suburbs

Al-Rahman Legion

  • Al-Bara Brigade
  • Glory Brigades
    • Abu Musa al-Shari Brigade
  • Ajnad al-Sham Islamic Union (Eastern Ghouta branch)
    • Al-Habib al-Mustafa Brigade
  • 101st Battalion

Ahrar al-Sham

  • Fajr al-Umma Brigade (independent group prior to 2017)

Free Syrian Army

  • 1st Brigade of Damascus

Syrian Army

National Defence Forces
Syrian Air Force
Palestinian Syrian militias

Russian Armed Forces

 Unknown
Strength
10,000 (in 2016)[23]
20,000 (in 2018)[24][25]		 15,000 (in 2018)[15] Unknown
Casualties and losses
10,000+ killed (2012–18)[26] 10,000+ killed (2012–18)[26] Unknown
20,000 killed civilians
(March 2011 to February 2018, per SNHR)[27]
~30,000 killed overall
(Eastern Ghouta hospital sources, 2017)[28]
105,000[29]–140,000[30] displaced (2018)

The siege of Eastern Ghouta was a siege that was laid by Syrian Government forces in April 2013,[1] to the area in eastern Ghouta held by anti-government forces since November 2012, during the Syrian civil war. The cities and villages under siege were Douma, Mesraba, Arbin, Hamouria, Saqba, Modira, Eftreis, Jisrin, as well as suburbs of Damascus Beit Sawa, Harasta, Zamalka, Ein Tarma, Hizzah and Kafr Batna.[31] By 2016, around 400,000 people were trapped in an area just over 100 square kilometres in size,[23] thus with a population density around 4,000 inhabitants/km2.

United Nations Security Council Resolution 2401, adopted on February 28, 2018, called for a nationwide ceasefire in Syria for 30 days, including Eastern Ghouta, but the Syrian Army continued the offensive. In March 2018, the Syrian Army split the enclave into three parts, reaching an agreement with the rebels to withdraw to the north, to Idlib. This action displaced 105,000 people from the area. Douma was the only city left by the end of that month that was not under Syrian government control.

On April 8, 2018, on the anniversary of the 2017 sarin gas Khan Shaykhun chemical attack, an agreement had been reached to evacuate remaining fighters and civilians from the last rebel-controlled pocket of Douma following the chemical weapons attack that reportedly killed 70 people, and injured 500 who displayed symptoms of "toxic gas" exposure.[32][33][34] The Syrian Government denied responsibility, together with its allies involved in the war: Russia and Iran. More than 50,000 people, including fighters from the Jaish al-Islam and their families, have been evacuated out of the city as part of the deal, to northern Syria.[8] Around 200 hostages loyal to the Syrian Government have reportedly been released by the rebels. Russian military police were deployed to Douma to enforce the agreement.[35]

Thousands of people were killed during this 5-year siege period. Numerous war crimes allegations were made during the siege, among others from the United Nations Human Rights Council, including the use of prohibited weapons, attacks on civilians, attacks against protected objects (schools, hospitals), starvation as a method of warfare and denial of medical evacuation.

Background

Prior to the Syrian civil war, the total population of Eastern Ghouta, a collection of farms and cities near Damascus, was around 1.5 million people.[1] During the civil unrest that began in Syria in March 2011, some of the eastern Ghouta residents took part in the protests against the Syrian president Bashar Al-Assad and joined the Syrian rebels and expelled Syrian government forces by November 2012.[36] In February 2013, Syrian rebels captured parts of the ring road on the edge of Damascus and entered the Jobar district of the capital city.[37] Backed by Iran and Hezbollah, the Syrian Arab Army counterattacked and in April 2013 began a siege of Eastern Ghouta, which is just 15 km or a half hour's drive outside the capital Damascus.[38] Cut off from the rest of the country, the population of Eastern Ghouta resorted to incineration of plastics to generate electricity. In early 2015, when the Syrian government cut off water supplies to Duma, the population adapted yet again and dug over 600 underground wells, using manual pumps to supply water.[1]

History

Map of the Eastern Ghouta enclave in 2017
  Syrian Government control
  Opposition control

In mid-2017, the main rebel faction in the area was Jaysh al-Islam, based in Douma (with an estimated 10–15,000 fighters in the region in early 2018[39]). The second largest was Faylaq al-Rahman, an official affiliate of the Free Syrian Army (FSA), controlling much of central and western parts of Ghouta, including the Jobar and Ain Terma districts. Ahrar al-Sham (based in Harasta) and Tahrir al-Sham (HTS – controlling smaller districts such as Arbin, al-Ashari and Beit Nayim, with an estimated strength in the area of 500 in February 2018[40]) had a far smaller presence.[41]

In August 2013, the area was subjected to a chemical attack that killed hundreds of people,[42] after which an agreement was made to ban chemical weapons in Syria. From 14 to 30 November 2017, the Russian-Syrian forces conducted more than 400 airstrikes in the area, hitting markets, schools and houses, and during some of those airstrikes allegedly using banned cluster munition.[43]

Despite efforts at turning Ghouta into a de-escalation zone, reports of bombs allegedly containing weaponised chlorine were registered again in early 2018.[44] By January 2018, the area had only a single doctor per 3,600 people.[45] Inter-rebel fighting in 2016 and once again in 2017 deteriorated the situation even further, showing a lack of unity among the rebel groups.

Jaysh al-Islam rebels in Eastern Ghouta in February 2017

After a series of offensive operations launched by Syrian rebels against positions of the Syrian Arab Army in Harasta, a northeastern suburb of Damascus, and other locations in Ghouta, the Syrian Arab Army launched an operation to capture the rebel-held part of Ghouta in February 2018. The escalation of hostilities led to a United Nations Security Council meeting held on 24 February 2018, voting unanimously in favor of a 30-day cease-fire in Syria, and demanded immediate lifting of the siege of eastern Ghouta.[46] In March 2018 the government offensive continued, being supported by the Russia both diplomatically and militarily.[47][48] On 11 March, the Syrian government took control over several areas and split the enclave into three pockets.[49] These pockets included Duma and its northeastern outskirts, eastern Harasta, and Zamalka and surrounding area.[50]

In mid-late March after a series of negotiations, a deal was finally reached between the Syrian government and rebels that controlled parts of Eastern Ghouta. The deal involved a transfer of remaining rebel fighters from the areas of eastern Harasta, Zamalka and surrounding areas to the province of Idlib. 105,000 people were displaced by this evacuation from the area.[29] By the end of March, Douma was the last pocket controlled by the rebels, the Jaish al-Islam fighters.[51]

For at least 10 days, there were minimal attacks on the rebel pocket of Douma as talks with the Jaish al-Islam continued. It was reported later that the Jaish al-Islam shelled residential areas in Damascus, causing casualties and material damage. By 6 April, talks had "faltered" between the two sides and the SAA renewed their offensive in response to the attack. The Jaish al-Islam denied responsibility.[52][53] The rebel group had also reportedly refused to release detainees loyal to the Syrian government it was holding in Douma.[54] The shelling on 8 April 2018, which left several civilians dead, drew allegations of chemical weapons use in Douma, though the UN could not verify the claim initially.[55]

Casualties

In February 2018, the Syrian Network for Human Rights, a UK-based non-governmental organization, founded in June 2011, published a report alleging that 12,783 civilians were killed in and around Eastern Ghouta from March 2011 to February 2018, including 1,463 children and 1,127 women.[27]

According to local hospital sources, which were cited in the French newspaper Le Monde, approximately 18,000 people were killed in the enclave by October 2017.[28]

Médecins Sans Frontières claimed that 70 percent of the enclave's population lived underground by November 2017 to escape bombardments. It also registered that, on average, 71 people were being killed daily since the 18 February 2018 offensive. It registered 1,005 people killed and 4,829 wounded in two weeks alone, between 18 February and 3 March 2018.[56]

War crimes allegations

Government and allies

Numerous war crimes allegations were made during the battle, including the use of prohibited weapons, attacks on civilians, attacks against protected objects (schools, hospitals), starvation as a method of warfare and denial of medical evacuation.[1][24] The siege by the Syrian government left the enclave under a humanitarian crisis, leading to famine and a lack of food.[44][57][58][24] According to a 2014 United Nations report, the denial of food as a military strategy began during July and August 2013: Eastern Ghouta's crops and farms were shelled and burned. The report also alleged that Syrian forces "blocked access roads and systematically confiscated food, fuel and medicine at checkpoints". Some inhabitants had to rely on tree leaves as an alternative for vegetables to survive.[59] The rebels established a web of tunnels to smuggle supplies, but they were destroyed by the government forces.[60]

A child casualty on 29 October 2017

UNICEF Representatives said that at least 12% of children under 5 were acutely malnourished in the enclave in early 2018.[61] On 27 October 2017, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein, warned that "the deliberate starvation of civilians as a method of warfare constitutes a clear violation of international humanitarian law" and called for access of humanitarian workers to deliver aid to the people of Eastern Ghouta.[62] The Syrian government restricted humanitarian aid to the enclave. On 30 October 2017, supplies were allowed to only 40,000 residents in the two cities of Kafr Batna and Saqba.[1] One U.N. aid convoy arrived to Eastern Ghouta in February 2018, only after it had no access for 78 days.[63]

Corpses of the victims of the 2013 chemical attack

The Syrian government also used chemical weapons against the armed groups in Eastern Ghouta in July 2017, specifically in Ein Tarma (1 July[64]), Zamalka (2 July[64]) and Jobar (6 July[64]), and on Harasta on 18 November 2017. The agents included chlorine gas and organophosphorous pesticide.[1] The Syrian government also used internationally banned incendiary weapons. In one such incident reported on 16 March 2018, at 11:48am, these weapons were dropped on Kafr Batna, killing at least 61 and wounding over 200 people.[65]

In December 2017, satellite imagery analysis by UN experts concluded that 3,853 buildings were destroyed, 5,141 severely damaged and 3,547 moderately damaged in the western parts of the enclave. The suburb of Jobar was 93% destroyed, Ein Tarma 73%, and Zamalka 59%.[66] Hospitals in Eastern Ghouta were reported to have been shelled: Syrian army forces destroyed a field hospital in Al-Zemaniyah during a ground operation in July 2013, while shells landed near Al-Fatih hospital, where victims of the chemical attack were treated, forcing it to discharge its patients.[59] Between 4 and 21 February 2018, the Syrian-Russian bombardments killed 346 people in Eastern Ghouta.[67] Local counts reported 700 deaths in the three months up to mid-February 2018, many of them civilians.[68] On 7 December 2017, the United Nations Senior Advisor Jan Egeland called east Ghouta the "epicenter of suffering".[69]

After the end of the siege, tens of thousands of people have been unlawfully interned by the Syrian Government forces in rural Damascus, including Ghouta.[30] Amnesty International has called the "unlawful siege and unlawful killing of civilians, including the use of internationally banned cluster munitions" by the Syrian government and Russia a war crime and a crime against humanity.[70]

Rebel groups

The United Nations also found the four largest rebel factions that were active in eastern Ghouta, namely Jaysh al-Islam, the Al-Rahman Legion, Ahrar al-Sham, and Tahrir al-Sham, guilty of crimes against humanity. They were known to arrest and torture members of religious minority groups,[24] and regularly fired mortars and rockets from eastern Ghouta at government-held areas. These attacks aimed at spreading terror, and killed many civilians.[1][24][71][72]

Reactions

United Nations

2013: After the alleged chemical weapons attack in the Ghouta area of Damascus, the UN sent an inspection team to begin an investigation. The final report concluded that evidence suggests that "surface-to-surface rockets containing the nerve agent sarin were used in Ein Tarma, Moadamiyah and Zamalka". The Russian government dismissed the initial UN report after it was released, calling it "one-sided" and "distorted".[73]

2018: After the start of the renewed SAA offensive called "Rif Dimashq offensive" during mid-February, the UN proposed a 30-day ceasefire aimed at allowing aid deliveries to enter besieged areas, as well as medical evacuations.[74] This ceasefire was "ignored" as the SAA continued its advances into the rebel-controlled areas. It was reported that in the following month, some 25 food trucks were allowed in. Some argued that this was simply not enough for the people living in war-torn areas.[75]

USA, France, UK

The governments of the United States, United Kingdom and France accused the Syrian government of a chemical attack against the population of Douma in April 2018. As a consequence, the three states conducted a series of airstrikes targeting sites associated with Syria's chemical weapons capabilities in Damascus and Homs on 14 April 2018.[76] The next day, Russia tried to pass a resolution condemning these US-UK-French airstrikes, but it was not adopted by the U.N. Security Council.[77]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 "Report of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic—Thirty-seventh session" (PDF). United Nations Human Rights Council. 1 February 2018. pp. 20–25. Retrieved 22 February 2018.
  2. ↑ "Western airstrikes unlikely to impact Assad's war machine". ABC News. Associated Press.
  3. ↑ "Syrian army declares full control of Eastern Ghouta rebel enclave". Xinhua News Agency. Archived from the original on April 15, 2018.
  4. ↑ "East Ghouta officially under the Syrian Army's control after last militant convoy leaves Douma". Archived from the original on 2018-11-23. Retrieved 2018-04-21.
  5. ↑ "Security Council discusses chemical weapons use in Syria following latest global watchdog report". UN News. 6 March 2019. Retrieved 24 March 2020.
  6. ↑ Ensor, Josie (12 April 2018). "Syrian flag flying over onetime rebel stronghold Douma as Russians announce victory in Eastern Ghouta". The Telegraph. Retrieved 12 April 2018.
  7. ↑ "Syrian government raises flag in Douma – Russian agencies". Reuters. 12 April 2018. Archived from the original on 13 April 2018. Retrieved 12 April 2018.
  8. 1 2 Reuters Editorial. "Syrian rebels evacuated from Douma reach northwest: monitor". U.S. Retrieved 2018-04-10. {{cite news}}: |author= has generic name (help)
  9. 1 2 Leith Aboufadel (9 March 2018). "Virtual map of East Ghouta battle: September 2015–Present". al-Masdar News. Archived from the original on 13 May 2019. Retrieved 16 March 2018.
  10. ↑ "Regime sends more forces to Ghouta as UN decries 'apocalypse' in Syria". Archived from the original on 2019-04-19. Retrieved 2018-03-24.
  11. ↑ Aymenn Jawad Al-Tamimi (14 February 2016). "Liwa Usud al-Hussein: A New Pro-Assad Militia in Latakia". Syria Comment. Retrieved 5 July 2018.
  12. ↑ Al-Tamimi, Aymenn Jawad. "The Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham". www.aymennjawad.org.
  13. ↑ ""داعش ـ 2" تحالفات سرية وخلايا نائمة" [ISIS-2: secret alliances and sleeper cell]. www.lebanon-daily.com (in Arabic). Archived from the original on 12 November 2019.
  14. 1 2 3 4 5 "Confirmed: Syrian Army's full order of battle for east Damascus offensive". Al-Masdar News. 18 February 2018. Archived from the original on 13 May 2019. Retrieved 20 February 2018.
  15. 1 2 "Over 15,000 Syrian military personnel deployed to East Ghouta for upcoming offensive". Al-Masdar News. 22 February 2018. Archived from the original on 13 May 2019. Retrieved 22 February 2018.
  16. ↑ Leith Aboufadel (21 January 2018). "Syrian Army scores major advance in east Damascus". Al-Masdar News. Archived from the original on 13 May 2019. Retrieved 25 February 2018.
  17. 1 2 Andrew Illingworth (24 February 2018). "VIDEO: New Syrian Army armored division heads towards east Damascus with over 100 tanks, armored fighting vehicles". Al-Masdar News. Archived from the original on 13 May 2019. Retrieved 25 February 2018.
  18. ↑ Leith Aboufadel (1 March 2018). "Over 2,000 Palestinian fighters deploy to Damascus for East Ghouta offensive (photos)". al-Masdar News. Archived from the original on 13 May 2019. Retrieved 16 March 2018.
  19. ↑ "Member of the 'General Command' dies in the eastern Ghouta clashes". Action Group for Palestinians of Syria. 2 March 2018. Retrieved 18 March 2018.
  20. ↑ "Free Palestine Movement mourns one of its members". Action Group for Palestinians of Syria. 12 March 2018. Retrieved 18 March 2018.
  21. 1 2 3 "Pro-Government Palestinian Factions Lay off Scores of Gunmen". Action Group for Palestinians of Syria. 24 August 2018. Retrieved 29 August 2018.
  22. ↑ "Breaking: Russian airpower pulverizes militant defenses across east Damascus amid sudden entry into major offensive". Al-Masdar. 20 February 2018. Archived from the original on 21 November 2018. Retrieved 20 February 2018.
  23. 1 2 Tom Rollins (18 December 2016). "The unravelling of Syria's Eastern Ghouta". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 22 February 2018.
  24. 1 2 3 4 5 "Both sides committed war crimes during Eastern Ghouta siege: UN". Middle East Eye. 20 June 2018. Retrieved 22 June 2018.
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  26. 1 2 "Map update: Syrian Army takes last rebel-held district of East Ghouta, ends six year battle". Archived from the original on 2018-07-14. Retrieved 2018-04-16.
  27. 1 2 "Approximately 13,000 Civilians Killed at the Hands of Syrian Regime Forces in Eastern Ghouta, including 1,463 Children" (PDF). SNHR. February 25, 2018. Retrieved 15 March 2018.
  28. 1 2 Madjid Zerrouky (26 October 2017). "En Syrie, les faubourgs rebelles de Damas affamés". Le Monde.fr (in French). Le Monde. Retrieved 15 March 2018.
  29. 1 2 "Over 105,000 civilians have fled Syria's Eastern Ghouta". France24. 24 March 2018. Retrieved 25 March 2018.
  30. 1 2 "Siege of Syria's eastern Ghouta 'barbaric and medieval', says UN Commission of Inquiry". UN News. 20 June 2018. Retrieved 22 June 2018.
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  33. ↑ "The Latest: Russia says deal struck for rebels to exit Douma". NZ Herald. 2018-04-08. ISSN 1170-0777. Archived from the original on 2018-04-08. Retrieved 2018-04-08.
  34. ↑ Syrian opposition and Russia reach agreement over Douma Sky News, 08 April 2018
  35. ↑ Reuters Editorial. "Scores of rebels, hostages leave Syria's Douma under deal: state media". U.S. Retrieved 2018-04-10. {{cite news}}: |author= has generic name (help)
  36. ↑ Yassin Al-Haj Saleh (7 February 2018). "Living Under Assad's Siege". New York Times.
  37. ↑ "Damascus on Edge as War Seeps into Syrian Capital". New York Times. 10 February 2013.
  38. ↑ "Syria: Children Under Attack in Damascus Enclave: UN Security Council Should Act on Eastern Ghouta Situation". Human Rights Watch. 11 January 2018. Retrieved 25 February 2018.
  39. ↑ Which rebel groups are fighting in Syria's eastern Ghouta?, Deutsche Welle, 20.02.2018
  40. ↑ Explainer: Who's fighting whom in Syria's Ghouta?, BBC Monitoring, 22 February 2018
  41. ↑ Wisam Franjieh In Besieged Eastern Ghouta, Rebel Infighting Increases Civilian Suffering, Syria Deeply, Aug. 1, 2017
  42. ↑ "'Clear and convincing' evidence of chemical weapons use in Syria. UN team reports". United Nations News. 16 September 2013. Retrieved 22 February 2018.
  43. ↑ "Syria/Russia: Airstrikes, Siege Killing Civilians: Allow Urgent Aid into Besieged Eastern Ghouta and End Indiscriminate Attacks". Human Rights Watch. 22 December 2017. Retrieved 25 February 2018.
  44. 1 2 "Syria: UN urges an end to hostilities, warns of grave and deepening humanitarian crisis". United Nations News. 6 February 2018. Retrieved 22 February 2018.
  45. ↑ Sharmila Devi (12 January 2018). "Syria: 7 years into a civil war". The Lancet. 391 (10115): 15–16. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(18)30006-0. PMID 29323641. S2CID 46773764.
  46. ↑ "UN Security Council agrees 30-day ceasefire in Syria". United Nations News. 24 February 2018. Retrieved 25 February 2018.
  47. ↑ Amid Outcry Over Ghouta, Russia Vows To Back Assad Against 'Terror Threat' Radio Liberty, 28 February 2018.
  48. ↑ Assad vows to press Ghouta assault, as civilians flee government advances Reuters, 4 March 2018.
  49. ↑ "Syrian army splinters rebel enclave in Ghouta onslaught". Reuters. 11 March 2018. Retrieved 13 March 2018.
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  52. ↑ "Syrian forces press ahead with offensive in rebel-held Douma". www.aljazeera.com. Retrieved 2018-04-07.
  53. ↑ "Syrian warplanes strike rebel enclave". BBC News. 2018-04-06. Retrieved 2018-04-07.
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  57. ↑ "'At the doors of starvation:' siege strangles Damascus suburbs". Reuters. 27 October 2017. Retrieved 22 February 2018.
  58. ↑ "Syria: Suffering in Eastern Ghouta reaches "critical point"". International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). 18 December 2017. Retrieved 27 February 2018.
  59. 1 2 "Report of the independent international commission of inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic". United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. 12 February 2014. pp. 16, 20. Retrieved 25 February 2018.
  60. ↑ "With tunnel lifeline cut, pressure mounts on Syrian rebel enclave". Reuters. 11 May 2017. Retrieved 25 February 2018.
  61. ↑ "120 children need urgent medical evacuation from East Ghouta". United Nations News. 17 January 2018. Retrieved 22 February 2018.
  62. ↑ "Syria: Suffering of civilians in Eastern Ghouta "an outrage" – Zeid". United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. 27 October 2017. Retrieved 23 February 2018.
  63. ↑ "UN, partners complete first aid delivery in months to Syria's war-battered east Ghouta". United Nations News. 14 February 2018. Retrieved 22 February 2018.
  64. 1 2 3 "Report of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic". United Nations Human Rights Council—Thirty-sixth session. 8 August 2017. p. 15. Retrieved 8 April 2018.
  65. ↑ "Russia Backs Syria in Unlawful Attacks on Eastern Ghouta". Human Rights Watch. 18 March 2018. Retrieved 25 March 2018.
  66. ↑ "Syria war: Families struggle to survive in Eastern Ghouta, under siege". BBC News. 22 February 2018. Retrieved 23 February 2018.
  67. ↑ "UN chief 'deeply alarmed' by escalating hostilities in Syria's east Ghouta". United Nations News. 21 February 2018. Retrieved 22 February 2018.
  68. ↑ 'It's not a war. It's a massacre': scores killed in Syrian enclave, Guardian, 20 February 2018
  69. ↑ "Note to Correspondents: Joint Press Stakeout by UN Special Envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mistura, and UN Senior Advisor Jan Egelan". United Nations. 7 December 2017. Retrieved 22 February 2018.
  70. ↑ "Syria: Relentless bombing of civilians in Eastern Ghouta amounts to war crimes". Amnesty International. 20 February 2018. Retrieved 22 February 2018.
  71. ↑ "Stop the "monstrous annihilation" of Eastern Ghouta – Zeid". Geneva: United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. 21 February 2018. Retrieved 25 February 2018.
  72. ↑ "Intense mortar shelling kills 5 in Syria's Damascus". Xinhuanet. 20 February 2018. Archived from the original on February 20, 2018. Retrieved 27 February 2018.
  73. ↑ Myers, Steven Lee; Gladstone, Rick (2013-09-18). "Russia Calls U.N. Chemical Report on Syria Biased". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2018-03-15.
  74. ↑ "UN approves 30-day ceasefire in Syria". BBC News. 2018-02-25. Retrieved 2018-03-15.
  75. ↑ "Limited food allowed to enter Syria's besieged Eastern Ghouta". www.aljazeera.com. Retrieved 2018-03-15.
  76. ↑ "Following airstrikes, UN chief warns against escalation over Syria". UN News. 14 April 2018.
  77. ↑ "Security Council rejects Russian request to condemn airstrikes in Syria". UN News. 15 April 2018.

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