Initial summary

• Place of incident: A camp near Kafr Ruhein Water Station in the countryside of Idlib.
• Impact site: A camp for internally displaced people.
• Date: Sunday, 6 November 2022.
• Time: Between 06:50 and 07:15 Damascus time.
• Victims: One woman killed and 12 others injured.
• Munitions likely used: Reports indicate the use of ground-to-ground missiles carrying cluster bombs, with at least one munition possibly being of the 220mm 9M27-K variant.
• Potentially responsible Syrian government forces and Russian air forces are likely responsible for the incident.

Introduction

Kafr Ruhein Water Station Camp, located west of the city of Idlib, was hit  with ground-to-ground missiles carrying cluster bombs on the morning of Sunday, 6 November 2022, between 06:50 and 07:15 Damascus time. This attack resulted in the death of a woman, the injury of others, and the death of animals in the camp.

A satellite imagery from Google Earth of the Kafr Ruhein Water Station Camp in the vicinity of the town of Kafr Ruhein (35.97316750667316, 36.582302707780876). The satellite imagery was annotated by Syrian Archive to show the camp’s borders. The imagery was captured by Syrian Archive on 23 September 2023.

The Kafr Ruhein Water Station Camp is located in the vicinity of the village of Kafr Ruhein, west of Idlib. Satellite imagery shows the first establishment of the camp in late 2018, with the number of tents in the camp increasing prior to the November 2022 incident. The number of families residing in the camp reached over 110 families, according to the Syrian Network for Human Rights.

Screenshots from Google Earth, the image at the top left is from 17 October 2018, the image at the top right is from 23 July 2020, the image at the bottom left is from 12 November 2021, the image at the bottom right is from 29 October 2022. The satellite imagery was annotated by Syrian Archive to show the increase in the number of families residing in the Kafr Ruhein Water Station Camp in the village of Kafr Ruhein (35.97316750667316, 36.582302707780876), captured by the Syrian Archive on 7 December 2023.

The Water Station Camp is one of the six camps that were reported to have been targeted simultaneously on the morning of 6 November 2023. The most severe incident occurred at the Maram and Watan camps in Kafr Jalis, located approximately 930 meters away from the Water Station Camp.

A screenshot from Google Earth capturing the distance between the Water Station Camp in Kafr Ruhein (35.97316750667316, 36.582302707780876) and the Maram Camp in Kafr Jalis (35.972691647961234, 36.59229477289928), captured by Syrian Archive on 23 September 2023.

What happened (and when)?

Reports and news circulating on social media, as documented by Syrian Archive in a previous investigation, mention the attack on the Maram Camp. Additionally, eyewitnesses from the Water Station Camp in Kafr Ruhein reported the fall of several projectiles on the camp between 06:50 and 07:15 on the morning of 6 November 2022.

A nearby area close to the Water Station Camp was also hit  while a correspondent from Baladi News Agency was reporting on the attacks in the area . The correspondent claimed it was an airstrike carried out by Russian warplanes. Smoke is shown rising in the footage, and the sound of aircraft can be heard in the background of the video.

A screenshot from a video by Baladi News Agency shows the rising smoke allegedly caused by an airstrike from a Russian warplane in the vicinity of the Water Station Camp in the village of Kafr Ruhein. This screenshot was captured by Syrian Archive on 23 September 2023.

Witnesses featured in the video from Baladi News Agency identified the location as the Water Station Camp in Kafr Ruhein. They claimed that the attack occurred after the Fajr Prayer, where they heard the sounds of three warplanes. Along with the Civil Defense team, the witness recounts providing  assistance to around ten injured individuals. Another witness spoke about the injury of a person, along with his wife and daughter, pointing out their tent that showed signs of damage  as well as animals killed in the area as a result of the attack.

Two screenshots captured by Syrian Archive from the video by Baladi News Agency, showing the tent used as a livestock shelter and the dead animals inside it. These screenshots were captured on 23 September 2023.

A person in another video stated that his wife was injured in the attack and was taken to the hospital. Additionally, two women in another video spoke about shrapnel “falling between the tents and filling the area.” They also mentioned that families had evacuated from the camp. This aligns with a call for response published by the Watan Foundation, one of the supporting organizations of the camp. The call mentioned the displacement of more than 3000 families from the six camps that were impacted.

A screenshot from a video by Baladi Agency shows the traces of blood in one of the tents, captured by Syrian Archive on 23 September 2023.

Impact sites

Photos and videos show five impact sites where projectiles  fell on the Water Station Camp and its surroundings, resulting in the death of a woman, the injury of 12 others, as well as the death of livestock. Additionally, the attack damaged the tents and caravans of camp residents.

First site

At the top is a photo from the Syrian Network for Human Rights, and at the bottom is a screenshot from Google Earth showing the location of a crater caused by one of the missiles that fell in the vicinity of the Water Station Camp in Kafr Ruhein (35.97316750667316, 36.582302707780876) captured by Syrian Archive on 25 September 2023.

Second site

At the top are three screenshots from a video by Baladi Agency showing the location where one of the missiles fell on the Water Station Camp in Kafr Ruhein. At the bottom is a comparison of the missile’ impact site with a screenshot from Google Earth, highlighting prominent landmarks. Captured by Syrian Archive on 21 September 2023.

Third site

At the top is a photo from the Syrian Network for Human Rights showing the location where one of the missiles fell. At the bottom is the identification of prominent landmarks in the first photo through Google Earth (35.97098454558523, 36.579590306187), captured by Syrian Archive on 25 September 2023.

Fourth site

Syrian Archive was unable to determine the geographic location of the image provided by the Syrian Network for Human Rights. Although, the coordinates used in the image’s title as labeled by the Syrian Network for Human Rights are 35.971971516628265, 36.58393273916338.

A screenshot from an image by the Syrian Network for Human Rights claimed to be the site of a missile impact at the Water Station Camp in Kafr Ruhein, captured by Syrian Archive on 25 September 2023.

Fifth site

Syrian Archive was unable to determine the geographic location of the image provided by the Syrian Network for Human Rights. Although, the coordinates used in the image’s title as labeled by the Syrian Network for Human Rights are 35.971802471894755, 36.58291991774194.

 A screenshot from an image by the Syrian Network for Human Rights claimed to be the site of a missile impact at the Water Station Camp in Kafr Ruhein, captured by Syrian Archive on 25 September 2023.

Timing

The available footage, captured immediately after the incident, allowed for the analysis of the sun’s position using the SunCalc tool. The apparent position of the sun in the video footage corresponds to the early moments of sunrise at the impact site on the day of the incident, which was at 07:00 local time according to SunCalc. This supports the claims made in the video and other open-source media reports.

At the top are screenshots from a video by Baladi News showing smoke rising following an airstrike reportedly conducted by a Russian aircraft on the outskirts of the Kafr Ruheinwater station camp. The screenshots were captured by Syrian Archive on 23 September 2023.

Screenshot of the sun’s position at the Kafr Ruhein Water Station Camp at 7:00 Damascus time on 6 November 2022, using the SunCalc tool.

Potential munitions used

In a video from Theqa Agency, a projectile can be seen falling on the outskirts of the Kafr Ruhein Water Station Camp. Comparing the missile’s structure and its head, it is likely to be a ground-to-ground 220mm 9M27-K variant missile.

Screenshot from a video by Baladi Agency of a missile in the vicinity of the Kafr Ruhein water station camp, captured by Syrian Archive on 23 September 2023.

Screenshot of the characteristics of the 220mm 9M27-K missile from the ARES website, captured by Syrian Archive on 25 September 2023.

A comparison of the structure and head of the missile that fell on the Water Station Camp with images and videos of similar missiles suggests that at least one of the missiles used is likely of the 220mm 9M27-K variant. The projectile’s  pointed head eight holes in the missile’s body— which are separated into two sets of four, each with two cylindrical rings—as well as the three blades distributed on the missile’s body, each leaving three gaps in each section, match that of a 220mm 9M27-K variant.

The screenshots at the top are from a video by Armament Research on YouTube, and at the bottom a screenshot from a video by Baladi Agency, both captured by Syrian Archive on 25 September 2023.

Image of remnants of 9M27-K variant missiles from the ARES website, captured by Syrian Archive on 25 September 2023.

An image published by the Syrian Network for Human Rights shows remnants of a missile resembling a 300mm 9M55k missile in terms of cylinder size and inclined fins. This missile was reportedly used on the same day in the Maram camp in Kafr Jalis, according to previous investigations by Syrian Archive.

At the top, an image from the Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction, available on the JMU Scholarly Commons and Issuu.com. At the bottom, an image from the Syrian Network for Human Rights captured by Syrian Archive on 25 September 2023.

Potentially responsible

The Facebook page for the Syrian government’s Ministry of Defense posted a video accompanied by a statement, in which it spoke about an attack by Syrian government forces in collaboration with the Russian Air Force on impact sites west of Idlib. These sites were previously identified by Syrian Archive in a prior investigation.

The pro-Syrian government channel, Al Mayadeen, mentioned in a tweet an attack by the Syrian and Russian government forces on a gathering of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham near Kafr Jalis west of Idlib. Additionally, news pages such as Syria Al Watan News  on Twitter, Idlib Online, Daraa Net, all of which are loyal to the Syrian government, reported on an attack that coincides in terms of location and timing with the impact sites in the six camps impacted by the attack, including the Kafr Ruhein Water Station Camp.

Accounts such as IDLIB PLUS, journalist Karam Saad Al Hajj, Hasan Jneed, Aleppo Today channel, in addition to news websites and pages, also reported on an attack by the Syrian government forces and the Russian air forces on camps west of Idlib, including the Kafr Ruhein Water Station Camp.

Previous investigations conducted by Syrian Archive on a related incident relied on the effective range of the munition potentially used in the incident, a study of the controlled areas within this effective range, and a map of the military distribution in the area, concluded that the responsibility for the attack is likely to lie with the Syrian government forces and the Russian forces from the southeast, possibly between the areas of Saraqib and Khan Al-Sabil located in the northeast and southeast of the camp.

The timing and date of the incident in the six camps, including the Kafr Ruhein Water Station Camp, may indicate the responsibility of the same parties for this incident.

Casualties

An eyewitness in a video from Baladi News spoke about providing medical assistance to around ten injured individuals in cooperation with the Civil Defense team. Another witness mentioned the injury of an individual along with his wife and daughter. Additionally, a survivor of the attack spoke about his wife being injured and taken to the hospital.

The Syrian Network for Human Rights reported the killing of a woman and the injury of 12 others.

Damage

The attack  resulted in the displacement of families from the camp, in addition to  damage to the tents and the death of livestock in the area.

Two screenshots from a Baladi News video show damage to the tents, captured by Syrian Archives on 3 October 2023.

 A screenshot from a Baladi News video shows dead animals inside one of the tents, captured by Syrian Archives on 3 October 2023.

The Watan Foundation Facebook page, one of the supporting entities for the camps that were hit, mentioned the complete damage to 41 tents and partial damage to over 100 tents. According to their post, the incident also resulted in the  displacement of around 3,000 people from the camps.

A picture from a post on the Watan page discussing the number of affected camps and the displacement from the six camps, captured by Syrian Archives on 2 October 2023.

Conclusion

The Kafr Ruhein Water Station Camp near the village of Kafr Ruhein in western Idlib was attacked on 6 November 2023, between 06:50 and 07:15 local time, with at least three missiles, one of which is likely to be of the 220mm 9M27-K variant.

The attack resulted in the death of a woman, the injury of 12 others, and the death of animals in the area. Additionally, it caused the displacement of several displaced families from the camp.

A previous investigation by Syrian Archives into the same attack that targeted six camps indicates the possible responsibility of the Syrian government forces and the Russian Air Force for the incident.