Horrendous testimonies on the most recent attack that killed 4 young girls in Northern Syria

On August 18, 2022, a brutal carnage was perpetrated on a United-Nations-backed boarding school in the Northern Syria village of Shamouka, situated in the province of Al-Hasaka. Following the drone attack, which has been one of the most violent amidst Turkey’s perpetual series of lethal barrages on the region, 4 young girls were killed and 11 others severely injured.

Now, testimonies of two eyewitnesses, Renda Bakr, 17 years old and Novin Ezzat, 18 years old, were published, which describe the horrors, the survivors of the bombardment were coerced to go through and brutishly assassinated their fellow schoolmates and friends.

The two young girls recount the incident by stating that they suddenly heard the sound of a drone right after their school was attacked. In an instant, blood was laying all over the ground and the sound of explosives and frightened screams was percolating the atmosphere. Wounded civilians were rushing into the hospital, to receive medical treatment, however, the death of Ranya Eta, Dilan Ezedin, Zozan Zedan, and Diyana Elo could not be prevented.

„Our friends were covered in blood and severely burned. It was awful and I could not realize or thoroughly comprehend what was going on in this moment “, states Novin Ezzat, one of the eyewitnesses, who still has shrapnel stuck in her leg. Both girls had loved school, but are terrified to again return to the place, where their friends had been brutally slaughtered.

Several parties and organizations, such as the US-led international coalition harshly condemned the attack and expressed their deepest condolences to the families of the deceased girls, however, refrained from naming Turkey as the perpetrator of the drone strike.

Turkey repetitively targeted the region of North and East Syria and just recently shelled a hospital in the city of Kobane, leaving a 2-year-old infant gravely injured. On August 19, a suspected Turkish drone strike caused the death of 14 civilians at a crowded market in the Northern Syrian, rebel-held city of Al-Bab.

According to a report, issued from the Rojava Information Center, Turkish-led missile and drone attacks have killed 62 people and injured 86 within one month.

The girls who survived the attack and those still treated in hospital for their severe wounds are currently in a state of grief and anguish, fearing returning to school and struggling to overcome the traumatic events, they have witnessed firsthand.