DARAYA, Syria (Reuters) — Air strikes by the Syrian government or its Russian allies hit rebel territories in the Damascus suburbs on Monday (August 8), resulting in “many” casualties, a monitoring group has said.
The British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported warplanes and helicopters launched raids across Damacus’s east and western suburbs, known as the Ghouta. The exact number of those killed or injured is unknown, but at least one man was killed in Meraba and “many people” were injured in strikes around Khan al-Shih.
Injuries were also reported in Daraya, about 11 km (7 miles) southwest from capital Damascus. Anti-government activist video from the Daraya Local Council purports to show a government helicopter dropping improvised munitions known as “barrel bombs” on the town.
The forces of President Bashar al-Assad are supported by Russian air power, Iranian militias and fighters from Lebanon’s Hezbollah group who have sent reinforcements to shore up the army.
The multi-sided civil war in Syria, raging since 2011, has drawn in regional and global powers, caused the world’s worst humanitarian emergency, and attracted recruits to Islamist militancy from around the world.
