A/HRC/34/64 in the Ard al-Hamra district were being treated. A “double-tap” attack4 was carried out within minutes, forcing the hospital to cease operating (see annex I, para. 49). 40. Medical staff confirmed there were no military installations in the area of al-Hakim hospital. One source admitted that wounded fighters received medical treatment in the same hospitals as civilians, but denied the presence of military targets around the hospital. The treatment of wounded fighters does not render a hospital a valid military objective (ibid., para. 37). 3. Food sources 41. Repeated attacks against markets, bakeries and other food sources indispensable for civilian life have been a hallmark of the prolonged siege laid to eastern Aleppo city, violating the right to regular, permanent and unrestricted access to sufficient food (see annex I, para. 11). The total number of markets and bakeries attacked from the air during the period under review is indicative of a pattern on the part of pro-Government forces of intentionally violating this right by targeting civilian infrastructure in order to compel the surrender of armed groups (ibid., para. 35). 42. On 28 September, shortly before morning prayers, at approximately 3 a.m., an air strike carried out by either Syrian or Russian air forces struck a bakery in al-Maadi district while inhabitants lined up to purchase bread. The bakery, which had previously served two neighbourhoods and fed almost 6,000 families, was completely destroyed. Eight civilians, including one of the owners, were killed during the attack, and at least 19 others were injured. Two days later, on 30 September, more than 15 civilians were killed in alHaydaria, when the Azizi bakery was hit by an air strike. The owner of the bakery again was among those killed during the attack. By mid-October, the besieged eastern Aleppo pocket had seven functioning bakeries after those in al-Maadi, al-Magayer and al-Mashhad districts were bombed out of service. 43. On 12 August, in al-Firdous district, between 4 and 5 p.m., Syrian or Russian forces conducted an air strike on a crossroads where the Firdous vegetable market was located. The market had been already been attacked by air strikes five times. About five minutes after the attack, pro-Government forces returned to carry out a “double-tap” attack (ibid., para. 49). Twenty civilians were killed as a result of the attacks, and dozens more were injured. On 13 October, at approximately midday, al-Firdous market was again hit by an air strike. Fifteen civilians, including at least one child, were killed during the attack and at least 30 others injured. As the attack took place during midday prayers, most victims present were adult males. The blast penetrated three metres deep into the ground and damaged a water main, affecting the civilian population’s access to water in al-Firdous district. 4. Water sources 44. During the period under review, the lack of potable water drastically reduced the access of Syrian men, women and children to sanitation and hygiene, and increased the risk of infectious and waterborne diseases. The human right to water, indispensable for leading a life in human dignity, is an essential prerequisite to the realization of all other human rights (see annex I, para. 12). 4 10 A “double-tap” air strike is one in which a second attack on a target/area follows shortly after the first, having the effect of killing and injuring those who came to provide aid to, mourn or remove bodies of the victims of the first attack.