Syria: Regime kills 9 more civilians in eastern Ghouta

By Adham Kako and Mohamad Misto

EASTERN GHOUTA/ANKARA (AA) - At least nine more civilians including children were killed by airstrikes conducted by Bashar al-Assad’s regime in eastern Ghouta region, east of Syrian capital Damascus, an official said on Monday.

Abu Yamin, a press officer for Eastern Ghouta's White Helmets, told Anadolu Agency: “The regime airstrikes backed by the artillery shelling hit residents in Harasta, Arbin, Duma, Kafr Batna, Marj and Madyera areas on Monday morning. The attacks killed nine civilians including four children.”

In recent days, regime forces have intensified their attacks on eastern Ghouta despite being considered as a de-escalation zone.

At least 82 civilians were killed by the regime forces in the area in one week, according to a source from the Civil Defense.

Eastern Ghouta falls within a network of de-escalation zones -- set up in Syria by Turkey, Russia and Iran -- in which acts of aggression are expressly forbidden. Regime forces have repeatedly attacked the district this week, leaving dozens of civilians dead or injured.

Syria has only just begun to emerge from a devastating civil war that began in early 2011 when the Assad regime cracked down on pro-democracy protests with unexpected ferocity.

Since then, hundreds of thousands of people have been killed in the fighting and more than 10 million displaced, according to the UN.