The bombing of Raqqa by Syrian government forces may constitute war crimes, said Amnesty International, stating multiple air raids appear to have killed dozens of civilians.
Amongst the targets hit were a mosque, a school and a market, said the human rights organisation, in a report that examined air raids carried out on Raqqa in November last year. Raqqa is currently the stronghold of Islamic State militants, which has increased its hold over the city since May 2013.
“The conclusions are damning,” said Amnesty International. “In some cases, the evidence points to the Syrian government forces having violated international humanitarian law by directing attacks against civilians.”
Amnesty International also called on the UN Security Council to “refer the situation in Syria to the International Criminal Court, impose an arms embargo on the Syrian government and impose punitive measures on the Syrian government and all other parties to the conflict” that violate the human rights-related provisions of previous Security Councils resolutions.
See the full report “Al-Raqqa Under Attack: Syrian Airforce strikes against civilians” here.