ALEPPO, Syria
At least 35 civilians were reportedly killed on Monday – and another 50 injured – by “barrel-bomb” attacks carried out by the Syrian air force in the Daesh-held city of Al-Bab in the northeastern Aleppo province, according to a local medical source.
The Aleppo-based medical source, who works for Ambulances Sans Frontiers, a Syrian NGO, told Anadolu Agency that seven barrel bombs had been dropped on “three areas of the city, including a fuel market.”
“The 35 casualties include 15 unidentified persons whose bodies were burnt beyond recognition due to the severity of the explosion,” the source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said.
Ambulances Sans Frontiers is a Syrian NGO that provides aid to victims of the conflict in the eastern Aleppo province.
Barrel bombs are improvised explosive devices typically consisting of barrels filled with combustible material and shrapnel. They are usually dropped from helicopters.
According to the UN, more than 220,000 people have been killed in Syria since the conflict began in early 2011 between the government of President Bashar al-Assad and heavily armed opposition groups.
