Home NewsAsia Attacks on Syrian bakeries have claimed nearly 1 000 lives since 2011

Attacks on Syrian bakeries have claimed nearly 1 000 lives since 2011

by Zahid Jadwat

DAMASCUS – Nearly 1 000 people have been killed in nearly 200 attacks targeting bakeries in Syria since March 2011, according to a report by an independent monitoring group.

 

On Friday, a report by the Syrian Network for Human Right (SN4HR) that around 801 Syrians have been killed in attacks specifically targeted towards at least 174 bakeries in Syria since March 2011.

 

A record level of attacks (28%) occurred on bakeries in 2019, with the northwestern Idlib and Aleppo governorates bearing the brunt of the incidents at around 46% and 26%, respectively.

 

Furthermore, the report noted that the attacks led to hours of long queues outside functioning bakeries. These bakeries are said to be exploited by the Syrian regime and Russia; both countries place the blame of the Syrian crisis on the West.

 

Maseeha Saloojee, a South African residing in the war-torn country, said the attacks on bakeries and other critical infrastructure has displaced many Syrians. “Many people have been displaced from their homes because of this situation; not necessarily because bombing on their homes, but because their livelihood is taken away”.
 
 
Saloojee explained that Syrian forces have targeted bakeries as a tactic to force people to leave areas controlled by rebels.
 
“If you take away people’s main staple – what they need every day – then people would be forced to relocate somewhere else,” she said.
 

Human Rights Watch (HRW) first detailed assaults on bread lines and bakeries in a report in August 2014. At the time, the New York-based advocacy group said that the Assad regime had targeted 10 bakeries in Aleppo, which resulted in the killing and wounding of scores of civilians. 

Julie Alli spoke to Maseeha Saloojee, a South African living in Syria, on News & Views. Listen to the full discussion here:

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