DAMASCUS
The Syrian regime has shelled the Yarmouk refugee camp late Friday in southern Damascus, a local activist said.
This is not the Syrian regime's first attack on the camp. On Wednesday, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon condemned another attack, which was carried out Tuesday, urging the Syrian regime to "immediately end any military operation that could endanger the lives of civilians in Yarmouk camp and abide strictly by its obligations under international humanitarian and human rights law to protect civilians during armed conflict."
The Yarmouk camp has been besieged by Bashar Al-Assad’s troops since 2012 and has been engulfed by intense fighting since the beginning of April as Daesh and Al-Nusra Front militants have been fighting each other.
Mustafa Abu Obaida, who is regular in the camp, told The Anadolu Agency that a regime helicopter had dropped nine barrel bombs.
The camp was also targeted by regime’s artillery, according to Obaida.
Apart from buildings that sustained severe damage, no casualties were reported.
“The humanitarian situation in the camp is getting worse. The people do not have access to basic nutrition and relief aid to the camp is not enough,” Abu Obaida added.
The camp housed approximately 18,000 Palestinian refugees, including nearly 3,500 children, as of early April.
