Remains of 7 people recovered from a well in the Hama countryside

Syrian Civil Defence search teams yesterday recovered the remains of seven people inside a well in an abandoned house in the western Hama countryside.

According to the residents, one of the remains belongs to a civilian who was killed by the Assad regime in 2013.

A founding member of the White Helmets, Ammar Al-Salmo, said in a statement to Al-Quds Al-Arabi that the Civil Defence teams recovered the remains of seven people from inside a well in the village of Al-Bani in the Hama countryside, after a resident reported the presence of human remains.

The complainant told the civil defence teams that he had been forcibly displaced from his home for years, and upon his return he began cleaning the well located in his home’s courtyard, where he noticed the remains of human bones and old clothes inside.

Al-Salmo said: “After pumping the well water, the team recovered the remains of seven individuals from inside it, belonging to six men and one woman, according to initial assessments. A resident of the area identified the remains of one of his family members, and according to testimonies from the villagers, the identified remains belong to a civilian who was liquidated by the Assad regime in 2013, and his body was thrown into the well.”

The remains have now been handed over to the forensic medical centre for identification.

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