After 5 days of fighting the Syrian security forces have left the city of Jadidat al-Fadel. In what opposition groups are calling a massacre of mostly unarmed civilians, the fighting produced the most victims in a single day since the
war began in 2011.
Early reports by
the Guardian stated that the dead might number around 250 or higher. However, a later
CNN dispatch out of the area cites that the casualty number has grown to possibly exceed 566.
Jamal al-Golani, a member of the Syrian opposition believes that at least 86 of the dead were shot at point-blank range in makeshift hospitals. Many more of the dead appeared to be shot at close range whether or not they identified themselves as opposition fighters.
Statements indicate that the area held up to around 270 rebels before the five day assault began. Of the dead it has been
said that 150 were Syrian opposition fighters and 300 were civilians. These dead add to the nearly 70 000 that have died since the uprisings began.
The reports coming from the major news organizations on the ground are unverified as almost all independent media was barred from Syria when the uprisings began in 2011. Most of the verification of the causalities is coming from opposition groups operating in the area and human rights organizations such as the U.K. based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. Documentation during the battle was also made difficult by the presence of government military patrols in the city.
