Since mid-March 2011 up until January 2017, VDC was able to document 172,886 battle-related deaths.
First, January Battle-Related Deaths:
During this month VDC was able to document a total of 702 deaths across different Syrian governorates, among them, 607 were documented by full name and 95 are still registered as unknown.
Second:
Third:
Fourth, Death by Type of Weapon:
185 of the total 702 of the battle-related death occurred by firearms and snipers, 260 by aerial attacks and barrel bombs, while tanks, cannons and mortars accounted for 187 battle-related deaths. Additionally, the VDC was able to document the deaths of 70 under other reasons; six deaths under torture in the Syrian government detention centers, 2 due to the lack of medical and food resources in besieged areas and 38 by land mines planted by ISIS, 5 kidnapped by unknown. While for the rest 19 the cause or the executioner was not undoubtedly identified.
Fifth:
Sixth, Deaths by ISIS:
During this month, VDC was able to document the death of 76 people, 59 are civilians, and 17 from different armed groups.
Seventh, The Decline in Hostile Activities After the Implementation of the Ceasefire Agreement:
After one month the ceasefire agreement took place, December 31, 2016. VDC documented clear declination in hostile armed activities, and a decrease in the numbers of deaths, compared to previous months specifically within the areas included in the ceasefire agreement. Furthermore, the center recorded the deaths of nearly 408 people in the areas covered by the agreement in the month of January 2017 compared to 700 civilians documented the previous month, 1 to 31 December 2016. A decrease of 41.7%.
In spite of the fact that the agreement included most of the areas in Syria -except those under the control of Daesh and Jabhat Fath Asham (Alnousra formerly) – many violations were committed by the Syria government forces and the affiliated militias, Most focused in Damascus Suburbs, Aleppo, Hama, Daraa, Homs, Idlib, and Qunaitira. Barada valley area in the countryside of Damascus, witnessed significantly higher number of violations and an escalation in military operations by the Syrian government and affiliated militias, in the first week into the ceasefire agreement, recently ended in driving Syrian opposition fighters out and providing safe passage to the city of Idlib in northern Syria.
Notes:
These figures are not final in any way, and they are subject to continuous and periodic scrutiny by center’s activists, the database administrators, and the field documentation team. Figures may differ between reports, and the most recent report is always considered to be the more accurate.
VDC team pays tribute to all the collaborative activists who extended a helping hand to our center as well as to the families of the victims. We also thank the Field Observation Team whose members face daily dangers executing their duties in Syria in order to document the human rights violations committed there, complete the data, and claim the rights of the distressed families from the concerned bodies and organizations.
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