(Telegraph-UK) David Blair - New video footage has emerged showing Syrian aircrew using barrel bombs. An airman inside a Syrian military helicopter is seen as he lights the fuse of a barrel bomb, then casually pushes it out of the aircraft and sends it hurtling towards the ground. Amnesty International says that barrel bombs have been used to lay waste to civilian areas, claiming at least 11,000 lives since 2012. Last month alone, at least 85 were dropped on the city of Aleppo. British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond said the latest footage exposed Syrian President Assad's "lies." "It shows the casual and indiscriminate way in which Syrian regime forces are dropping these horrific weapons out of helicopters onto civilians below." The use of barrel bombs breaks international humanitarian law because these weapons cannot be targeted and are inherently indiscriminate.
2015-05-22 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive