Zara'a attack

Zara'a attack
Part of the Syrian civil war
Zara'a in the Hirbnafsah Nahiyah, Hama Governorate
Location	Hama Governorate, Syria
Date	12 May 2016
Target	Alawite civilians, National Defence Forces
Attack type	Shooting
Weapons	AK-47s and other small arms
Deaths	8-30 NDF militiamen
Injured	Unknown
Perpetrators	Al-Nusra Front and Ahrar ash-Sham
Motive	Sectarianism

On 12 May 2016, militants of the al-Qaeda-linked al-Nusra Front and Ahrar ash-Sham attacked and captured the Alawite village of Zara'a, Southern Hama Governorate.

The attack

An early morning surprise attack on Zara'a defeated a National Defence Forces unit stationed there, and allowed the rebels to enter the predominantly Alawite village. According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, eight pro-government militiamen were killed and several villagers were kidnapped, while the Local Coordination Committees of Syria claimed that 30 pro-government militiamen were killed. More clashes continued into the afternoon with the Syrian and Russian Air Forces conducting airstrikes on rebel positions. This rebel attack was a part of an assault in "revenge for Aleppo."

Aftermath

According to the pro-government outlet Al-Masdar News, the kidnapped civilians were taken to the al-Rastan plains. Some of the captured were pro-government troops. On 24 May 2016, the Syrian Red Crescent convinced the militants to hand over civilians and NDF bodies. They were transported by the Syrian Army to the Homs Military Hospital for identification the next day.

Reactions

Syria: Prime Minister Wael Nader al-Halqi said that the massacre was "a heinous crime against the whole world." He also mentioned that "the international community must stand by Syria in fighting terrorism and should take immediate steps to prevent the countries which support terrorism from supplying terrorists with arms and money, on top Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Turkey."

The Syrian Foreign Ministry also sent two letters where they called on the UN Secretary-General and the UN Security Council to condemn the massacre.

France: A French MP and president of the France-Syria Friendship Group in the National Assembly, Gérard Bapt condemned the murder of Alawite families in Zara'a. He added that "the recent initiative to officially add Ahrar ash-Sham and Jaysh al-Islam to the list of terrorist organizations was not supported by the UN Security Council due to the fact that five Western countries have disagreed." He further said "[We] must take the appropriate measures in Riyadh and within the framework of the High Negotiation Committee in Vienna to ensure the immediate liberation of civilians who were taken hostage."

See also

• List of massacres during the Syrian Civil War