A/HRC/22/59 the shelling. Following the shelling, the Syrian military operations on Al-Khadra escalated to airstrikes and dropped “barrel bombs” from fighter jets. 87. There are reasonable grounds to believe that the widespread shelling of Al-Khadra was conducted in an indiscriminate manner in violation of the laws of armed conflict. Al-Rabia district 88. Around 15 July, the village of Al-Hilwa was shelled. According to victims of the shelling, Syrian armed forces were targeting the FSA who were attempting to take control of a security compound in the village, but that the shelling was so heavy that it hit residential areas, indicating that Government forces did not take the necessary precautions in attack to minimise the incidental loss of life and destruction of civilian objects. 89. There were multiple consistent accounts of snipers targeting civilians in Al-Rabia between 21–22 July. One sniper was positioned on top of the police station and another on top of the Military Security building in Al-Rabia. A family that was driving past the police station was shot by snipers, injuring children inside the car. A man collecting milk from the farms in Al-Rabia on 22 July at 10:30 was hit by sniper fire in the back. Government snipers in Al-Rabia targeted civilians, deliberately firing at persons who were engaged in civilian activities. Jabal Al-Turkman 90. In mid-July, villages in Jabal Al-Turkman came under intense shelling. The village of Shakria was shelled daily with mortar and artillery shells. Interviewees described how helicopters were used to bombard the village alongside shelling by artillery. An FSA fighter interviewed described how the FSA operated in the Jabal Al-Turkman area, noting that while there were attempts to use buildings away from residential areas, a civilian house that was bombarded in Rabia village in mid-July was located near a house used by the FSA. The Jabal Al-Turkman area continued to be hit by “barrel bombs” dropped by helicopters, as the area is too close to the Turkish border for armed forces to use fighter jets. 91. The particular use of means and methods of warfare by the Government forces, namely the use of “barrel bombs” dropped from fighter jets at high altitudes, contributes to the indiscriminate nature of hostilities and amounts to serious violations of international humanitarian law. Qastal Ma’af 92. The shelling of Sarayha, a village in Qastal Ma’af, began on 20 August. The village was shelled with mortars and artillery during the night and subjected to aerial bombardment during the day. One interviewee account described that an anti-Government armed group was present in the village but that the buildings they used were not targeted in the shelling. Entire civilian areas of Sarayha were shelled. 93. Another interviewee, a former resident of Al-Shakiriyah village in Qastal Ma’af, described the situation at the beginning of Ramadan, “When the FSA rebel groups came to the village and the village gave them shelter, shelling by the Syrian army started targeting the entire village.” 94. In early September, Beit Alwayli, a Turkman village near Qastal Ma’af was shelled. A victim of the shelling described how her family home was hit at 12:30, while she was with her children. This incident, among others, indicates that Government forces did not take adequate precautions during their operations in Qastal Ma’af. The widespread bombardment of an area as a single military target, without distinguishing civilian objects is a violation of the principle of distinction under the laws of armed conflict. GE.13-10627 101