Islamic State Beheads 33 People in Syria

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, based in London, reported on Thursday, April 6, that the Islamic State group, ISIS, beheaded 33 young Syrians in Deir ez-Zor province on Wednesday. According to this report, all 33 victims, aged between 18 and 25, were killed in what is described as the 'largest mass execution' by the Islamic State in 2017. Several members of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, who were able to see the bodies in the deserts around al-Mayadin, stated that all the heads of these corpses were severed. Human rights activists in Syria reported that none of the bodies have been identified so far, and it is unclear whether these individuals were members of the Islamic State or affiliated militia forces. There is also a possibility that these individuals were prisoners under the control of the Islamic State who were executed. News agencies report that at least 330,000 people have been killed in the Syrian civil war, which has now entered its seventh consecutive year, beginning with the suppression of largely peaceful protests by Syrian citizens against the Bashar al-Assad regime, leading to armed conflicts and the emergence of groups like the 'Islamic State' and al-Qaeda affiliates. The UN Secretary-General's humanitarian representative announced on April 2 that more than 13 million Syrian citizens are in need of humanitarian assistance, and aid worth eight billion dollars must be sent to them this year. Currently, the number of Syrian citizens in need of assistance constitutes 60% of the total population of the country.