· Published April 15, 2017

Syrian Car Bomb at Evacuation Center: Death Toll Rising
By Faye Higbee

A massive car bomb blast struck near buses that were evacuating residents of 2 Shi’ite towns, Foua and Kfraya. Fox News reports that more than 100 people were killed in the blast, which is up from previous reports. The people were being transferred to Aleppo, but the evacuation process between the government and the rebels had stalled, leaving the people – who had left their homes 30 hours before – stranded.

The Red Crescent has just delivered meals to the residents when the car bomb exploded.

Fox reported,

In footage aired on Syrian TV, bodies, including fighters, were seen lying alongside buses, some of which were charred and others gutted from the blast. Personal belongings could be seen dangling out of the windows. The state TV channel said the car was carrying food aid but a rebel spokesman said the car had been parked in the area and abandoned.

The explosion hit the Rashideen area, a rebel-controlled district outside Aleppo city where evacuation buses carrying nearly 5,000 people from the northern rebel-besieged villages of Foua and Kfraya were stuck, causing a huge plume of black smoke. Residents from the two villages had been evacuated Friday, along with more than 2,000 from Madaya, an opposition-held town outside of Damascus besieged by government forces.

Around 30 rebel fighters were killed in the blast, according to reports. The car bomb was reportedly disguised as a humanitarian vehicle. Who did it is the operative question, as the difference between rebel groups and Assad is a very thin line. Did Jabhat al-Nusra, the Al-Qaeda group do this? Did Assad?

Featured image via Twitter

Share: