A/HRC/28/69 231. In the context of hostilities between Bedouin military and Druze localities in AsSuweida, Bedouin militants allied with Jabhat Al Nusra fired upon civilian passenger buses on 14 August and 16 August 2014 near Dama and Deir Dama, wounding women and children with gunshots from the direction of the town of Ariqa. On 16 August, Bedouin Jabhat Al Nusra fighters attacked a Druze family, killing three men with mortar fire. Survivors of the attack stated that the fighters shouted, “You are kufar, you are pigs. We are coming to kill you.” 232. Improvised explosives placed on a busy route between Dama and Areeqah in Dara’a killed five civilian passengers travelling on a bus and injured nine others on 3 September 2014. The bus was hit by two consecutive IEDs, causing major damage to the vehicle and its passengers. The casualties included a high school student and a school principal. 233. Armed groups shelled Government-controlled civilian areas of Busra Al-Sham, Dara’a between March and September and between 7 and 25 October 2014. Armed groups also shelled Government-controlled areas of Dara’a and Busra Al-Sham throughout 2014, causing civilian casualties due to their indiscriminate manner. 234. Prior to being pushed back by Government forces in October 2014, armed groups operating in northern Hama governorate had intensified their hostilities against Government-controlled areas conducted indiscriminate attacks against Al Suqaylabyah between August and September, Mahrada between July and September, and Karnaz in October. In the eastern countryside, armed group fighters conducted indiscriminate attacks on villages west of Salamiyah city including Snaydeh, Khnayfiss and Salamiyah in October 2014. 235. VBIEDs continued to be deployed by armed groups operating in Hama, indicating an increased use of and reliance on tactics that spread terror among the civilian population. On 31 August and 1 September, there were two car bomb attacks on Taldara, a majority Ismaili village. The first attack killed two civilians and severely injured nine others, four of whom were young children. Six more civilians were killed in the second attack. Many of those injured were maimed. The explosion led to the extensive destruction of residential homes and agricultural buildings. On 3 September, a roadside IED was detonated between Al-Kafat and Taldara, killing a father and his child and severely injuring the mother. The family was on their way to get medical treatment for their child. This attack followed several other attacks on the Al-Kafat – Taldara road in August 2014. 236. On 24 September 2014, Jabhat Al-Nusra claimed responsibility for a car bomb attack on Ain Amouda, Hama, killing two and injuring ten civilians. Witnesses to the attack stated that there were no Government military or NDF forces in the area. Residents of Ismaili enclaves in the Hama countryside described a drastic increase in the number of IEDs and car bomb attacks in recent months and the level of fear instilled as a result. 237. Civilians living in Homs city continued to be affected by armed group hostilities directed at residential neighbourhoods. Wadi Dahab neighbourhood was attacked with mortar fire on 16 September, and Zahra was targeted in November 2014. Residents alleged that the attacks were carried out with rocket propelled grenades by fighters from Jabhat Al Nusra. 238. Non-State armed groups attacked civilian areas under Government control in an indiscriminate manner, often targeting no military objective and causing civilian casualties. The continued rise in documented IEDs, vehicle borne and roadside, particularly in Hama governorate, has resulted in high civilian casualties as they target civilians in densely populated areas and transit routes. Such conduct is in violation of international humanitarian law, and where attacks target civilians, amount to war crimes. Islamic State of Iraq and Al-Sham 56