In February,
Mr Assad told the BBC: “There’s no barrel bomb – we don’t have barrels. It’s like talking about cooking pots: we don’t have cooking pots.”
This heli was shot down and this vid was found in crew phone.
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New footage has emerged showing Syrian aircrew using barrel bombs, one of the most feared weapons in President Bashar al-Assad’s arsenal.
The
video footage, which contradicts Mr Assad’s claim that no munitions of this kind have ever been used by his forces, shows an airman crouching inside a Syrian military helicopter, chatting to his neighbour as he lights the fuse of a barrel bomb.
Once the white touch paper is burning, the man casually pushes the weapon out of the aircraft and sends it hurtling towards the ground.
Barrel bombs are metal cylinders packed with high explosives and pieces of shrapnel. These weapons, which have no targeting or guidance mechanisms, are simply rolled out of helicopters as they fly over rebel-held towns and villages.
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.
The footage, obtained by al-Jazeera, appears to have been shot on a mobile phone inside a Syrian helicopter. These raids have become so frequent that the airmen behave as if they are following a mundane routine. They laugh and joke as they prime the weapons for use against their fellow Syrians.
In February,
Mr Assad told the BBC: “There’s no barrel bomb – we don’t have barrels. It’s like talking about cooking pots: we don’t have cooking pots.”
Philip Hammond, the Foreign Secretary, said the latest footage exposed Mr Assad’s “lies”. He added: “It shows the casual and indiscriminate way in which Syrian regime forces are dropping these horrific weapons out of helicopters onto civilians below. For months we have seen reports of barrel bombs hitting hospitals and schools, killing thousands.
"The UN has called for an end to these attacks but Assad continues to ignore international outrage.”
The fuse on the bomb is lit (al-Jazeera)
The use of barrel bombs breaks international humanitarian law because these weapons cannot be targeted and are inherently indiscriminate.
Mr Hammond said: “We will bring those involved in these criminal acts to justice and will continue to help those caught in attacks by continuing our support of rescue teams working on the ground.”
Bashar al-Assad's airmen laugh as they drop barrel bombs on fellow Syrians - Telegraph
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