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A/HRC/19/69 11 40. After the withdrawal of League of Arab States observers in late January, the army intensified its bombardment with heavy weapons. It gave no warning to the population and unarmed civilians were given no chance to evacuate. As a result, large numbers of people, including many children, were killed. Several areas were bombarded and then stormed by State forces, which arrested, tortured and summarily executed suspected defectors and opposition activists. 41. According to the Violations Documenting Centre, at least 787 civilians, including 53 adult women, 26 girls and 49 boys, were killed in the first two weeks of February 2012 alone. The largest number of victims died in Homs. 42. In Idlib governorate, the army shelled the villages of Ihsim, Ibleen, Ibdita, Kasanfra and Kafar Awid in mid-December. When State forces took control of the villages, security agents pillaged houses and loaded their loot into trucks brought along to transport detainees. On 20 December, local residents discovered the bodies of 74 defectors in a deserted area between Kafar Awid and Kasanfra. Their hands had been tied behind their back and they appeared to have been summarily executed. On 21 December, State forces attacked a group of activists from Kafar Awid who had sought refuge in the village mosque. After the forces withdrew, 60 bodies were discovered in the mosque. The victims appeared to have been tortured before their execution. 43. From 24 to 26 December 2011, the army launched a large-scale operation in Bab Amr, Homs, where an FSA group was present. Residential buildings in Bab Amr were shelled by tanks and anti-aircraft guns. League of Arab States observers, who visited on 27 December, confirmed that the area had been shelled. State snipers also shot at and killed unarmed men, women and children. On 19 January, State forces shelled Homs again, including Bab Houd and Bayada, killing civilians. 44. On 12 January 2012, the army started shelling Zabadani, Rif Dimashq, causing civilian casualties. Armed clashes with an FSA group lasted for six days and ended with the military redeploying to the outskirts of the city and imposing a blockade. 45. On 24 January, tanks and snipers surrounded and shelled Bab Qebli neighbourhood in Hama, where an FSA group had been present. FSA members had apparently withdrawn upon the approach of the army, but many opposition activists remained in the neighbourhood. The next day, soldiers raided the neighbourhood, arresting many and looting homes. On 26 and 27 January, State forces conducted a similar operation in the Al Hamidieh neighbourhood in Hama. After the operations in Bab Qebli and Al Hamidieh, the handcuffed bodies of persons who had apparently been executed were dumped in Hama. 46. On 3 February 2012, in an escalation of violence, State forces in Homs began shelling densely populated areas in Khaldieh with heavy weapons. The presence of snipers prevented civilians from fleeing. On 6 February, the same type of operation was extended to Bab Amr, which the Government shelled and attacked with rockets. B. Attacks on the political opposition, human rights defenders and the media 47. The crackdown on peaceful protesters and raids on neighbourhoods suspected of supporting the opposition continued. The commission received additional accounts of military, security forces and Shabbiha using live ammunition against unarmed protesters. Defectors indicated that soldiers continued to receive “shoot to kill” orders. The Government also carried out reprisals in response to opposition calls for strikes. Participants in strikes on 11 December 2011 in Rif Dimashq and on 24 January 2012 in Hama were attacked by State forces