Officials say a drone attack targeting a Syrian military academy killed at least 89 people in the western city of Homs, BBC reported.
The drones were filled with explosives and resulted in women and children dying, and families of the cadets were in attendance at the academy’s graduation ceremony, according to BBC.
“My mother was coming to celebrate me, like she was coming to my wedding,” Yasser Mohamed, an officer who survived the attack, told Reuters. Mohamed’s mother did not survive.
“We were happy, taking pictures, then suddenly … this is such a hard day, and such a huge tragedy,” he told the outlet. (RELATED: Americans Attacked By ‘Kamikaze Drones’ In Syria)
#FromTheSouth News Bits | At least 80 people were killed in a drone strike in Syria. pic.twitter.com/O92Qrdhx4f
— teleSUR English (@telesurenglish) October 6, 2023
Syrian officials, who believe the drones were launched from opposition-held areas northwest of Homs, blamed the attack on “terrorist groups backed by known international forces,” per BBC
The General Command of the Armed Forces said in a statement that it “considers this act an unprecedented criminal one, and affirms that it will respond with full force and determination to these terrorist groups wherever they are,” the BBC reported.
Death toll counts differ. The Syrian health ministry reports 89 people, including 31 women and five children, were killed. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights claims the number is above 120, according to Reuters.
Geir Pedersen, the UN’s special envoy for Syria, said the attack was “horrific” and called on all warring parties to “exercise the utmost restraint,” according to BBC.
“Today’s developments further highlight that the status quo in Syria is unsustainable and that, in the absence of a meaningful political path … I fear we will only see further deterioration, including in the security situation,” Pedersen said, per BBC.
The Syrian Civil War that erupted in 2011 has left more than half a million people dead and 6.8 million people internally displaced, BBC reported. Another six million have reportedly fled abroad.