News / Russia

Russia dismisses Amnesty’s ‘fake’ report on Syria strikes

Wednesday, 23 December 2015 6:14 PM [ Last Update: Wednesday, 23 December 2015 6:14 PM ]

In this photo made from video footage provided by the Russian Defense Ministry on December 9, 2015, a Russian Su-34 bomber drops bombs on a target in Syria. (AP photo)

Russia has dismissed as full of “clichés and fakes” a report by Amnesty International that its airstrikes in Syria have killed many civilians.

Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said on Wednesday that authorities have examined the report. "Once again there was nothing concrete or new that was published, only clichés and fakes that we have already repeatedly exposed."

"The conflict in Syria has been going on for almost five years. Around 300,000 people are estimated to have become its victims. It's strange that Amnesty International avoids a question about who committed war crimes in Syria before the appearance of a Russian air force group there," said the Russian official.

Amnesty alleged in its report that Russian airstrikes in Syria have left hundreds of civilians dead and caused huge destruction in residential areas in “attacks that show evidence of violations of international humanitarian law.”

Elsewhere in his statements, Konashenkov said Amnesty confidently argues that there have been no military targets or militants in the areas that were allegedly struck by Russian airstrikes, but they cannot know this and have no way of checking.

The report puts forward empty allegations "without any sort of proof" while relying on the wrong sources, the official said.

"Even in the preface of the report it says that all the listed facts have been researched long-distance, with information received from telephone questioning of local so-called rights activists."

Russia launched the campaign against the Takfiri Daesh terrorists and other militant groups in Syria on September 30 upon a request from the Damascus government.

A US-led coalition has also been targeting alleged Daesh positions in Syria since September 2014 without a permit from Damascus or a UN mandate. The effectiveness of those strikes have been questioned as infrastructure has been targeted in several cases.

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