On March 6, 2024, gunmen we have not yet been able to identify opened fire with machine guns at civilians who were on their way to collect desert truffles in the badiya ‘desert’ of Kbajeb in southern Deir Ez-Zour governorate. According to initial estimates, four of the victims, all civilians, were killed while another seven were injured. The gunmen, travelling in a convoy of motorbikes and a pick-up truck, then proceeded to burn 12 cars belonging to the truffle-collectorss, with the survivors fleeing the scene following the shooting. The area is under the control of Syrian regime forces.
The Syrian Network for Human Rights (SNHR) is still trying to locate eyewitnesses to obtain more information about the incident.
We call on the controlling forces to uphold their responsibilities for protecting civilians in their areas, to investigate this incident, and to make the investigation’s findings known to the public. Syria will never have true stability without a genuine political transition process towards democracy within a fixed timetable.
