Two missiles hit Syria’s Kessab, no casualties reported

PanARMENIAN.Net - The mostly Armenian-populated Syrian town of Kessab was hit by two BM-21Grad missiles at 3:15 and 3:30 pm on Wednesday, Jan 20, the Armenian Weekly reported, citing Aleppo-based Kantsasar newspaper.

One of the missiles, which came from Keless and Mazraat Saraafi regions (approximately 10-13 miles from Kessab) in the direction of the Turkish border, landed approximately 160 feet from the town’s mosque, while the other landed in the street behind Kessab’s Holy Trinity Armenian Evangelical Church, according to Kantsasar.

The missiles reportedly caused substantial material damages. Though no fatalities were reported, one Kessab resident was injured in the incidents. “The residents of Kessab, especially the children who were playing outside of their homes, were severely shaken,” read a part of the Kantsasar report.

Dr. Nerses Sarkissian, a member of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF) Central Committee of Syria and of the Syrian Armenian Committee for Urgent Relief and Rehabilitation, in a Dec 9, 2015 interview with the Armenian Weekly said that about 1,500 Armenians currently live in the town of Kesssab, down from more than 2,000 before the start of the Syrian war.

Sarkissian also said at the time that members of Kessab’s Armenian community have employed a system of volunteer guards, to ensure the safety of the people, as is the case for Aleppo and Kamishli. “Even when there are rocket attacks, our volunteers help to avoid panic from taking over the community. In times of crisis, the volunteers help distribute food, water, and other basic needs, and help people move to safer spaces. All of this is done systematically and in a highly organized fashion,” Sarkissian said in December 2015.

The Syrian Army officially announced its recapture of Kessab on June 15, 2015.