RFE/RLSat, 12 Aug 2017 17:15 UTC
© AFP
Unidentified assailants shot dead seven members of Syria's White Helmets rescue service early on August 12 during a raid on their base in northwestern Syria.
The seven volunteers were all killed by bullets to the head."The civil defense center in Sarmin was the target of an armed attack by unknown assailants in which seven volunteers were killed," the White Helmets said in a statement.
"Two minibuses, some white helmets and walkie-talkies were stolen."
It was not immediately clear if the raid had political or criminal motives. Sarmin is in Idlib Province, which has witnessed clashes recently between rival insurgent groups.
The British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said that the fatalities were discovered when volunteers arrived to start a shift and found the bodies of their colleagues.
The White Helmets have been working to rescue civilians in rebel-held areas since 2013.
They work exclusively in rebel-held areas and receive donations from several Western governments, including Britain, Germany, the Netherlands, and the United States.
President Bashar al-Assad's government and his ally Russia accuse them of being tools of their international donors.
They are known for their daring rescues, filmed and circulated on social media.
In 2016 they were nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize.
Comment: Live by the sword... It's almost cute that RFE/RL continues to refer to White Helmets as "volunteers" and humanitarians instead of the more accurate designation of al-Qaeda terrorists. But then, there hasn't been a U.S.-supported death squad that RFE/RL didn't love.
Update (Aug. 14): Boris Johnson made a fool of himself
again:
"I am appalled by the targeted and heinous murders of heroic White Helmets volunteers who put their own safety at risk to save lives on all sides of the Syrian conflict," Johnson said, as quoted by the UK governmental press service.
The UK official stated that the death of the organization's volunteers was "a huge loss for their families, Syria and the world."
Enough with the love for al-Qaeda, already! As for that bolded bit, this quote from the original article is all the rebuttal that's necessary:
The White Helmets have been working to rescue civilians in rebel-held areas since 2013.
The White Helmets do NOT work to save lives on "all sides" of the conflict. They work exclusively for al-Qaeda and other related terrorist groups. And it's debatable that they "rescue civilians". Residents in Aleppo say they saved
some people, but left others to die, helped to kill others, and generally acted like a group of thugs.
Comment: Live by the sword... It's almost cute that RFE/RL continues to refer to White Helmets as "volunteers" and humanitarians instead of the more accurate designation of al-Qaeda terrorists. But then, there hasn't been a U.S.-supported death squad that RFE/RL didn't love.
- White Helmets volunteer caught with rebels dumping beheaded bodies
- White Helmets: Severed heads of Syrian Arab Army soldiers paraded as trophies also endorsed by Channel 4
- Yet another video surfaces showing Western backed White Helmets assisting public executions in 'rebel-held' Syria
- John Pilger: The White Helmets are a complete propaganda construct in Syria
Update (Aug. 14): Boris Johnson made a fool of himself again: Enough with the love for al-Qaeda, already! As for that bolded bit, this quote from the original article is all the rebuttal that's necessary: The White Helmets do NOT work to save lives on "all sides" of the conflict. They work exclusively for al-Qaeda and other related terrorist groups. And it's debatable that they "rescue civilians". Residents in Aleppo say they saved some people, but left others to die, helped to kill others, and generally acted like a group of thugs.