Video Reportedly Shows Volunteers Responding to Syrian Barrel Bomb Attacks

Videos posted online by activists shows a civil defense unit responding after an alleged barrel bomb attack on a Syrian town in Aleppo province that reportedly killed members of the Islamic State late Monday night.

Footage from one of the videos reportedly shows burned-out buildings and rubble from bombings on a restaurant and a bakery in the town of Al-Bab, which is located northeast of the city of Aleppo.

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A second video shows a members of a civil defense unit loading body bags into vans. Civil defense units are organized groups of residents operating in towns and neighborhoods throughout northern Syria, providing vital services like security and medical care.

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According to activists working in the area, Syrian regime forces dropped barrel bombs on the storefronts in Al-Bab, killing at least 20 people. While the identities of the casualties could not all be confirmed, Islamic State militants were believed to be a majority of the dead.

Other local sources with information about the events in Al-Bab also confirmed that Islamic State fighters were killed in the attack, along with at least eight civilians. They indicated that helicopters had dropped barrel bombs near a square where militants were known to hang people after killing them.

In August, the Islamic State insurgency moved in and took over a host of towns in northern Aleppo province, including Akhtarin and Turkmanbareh. The group also wrested control of various villages from rival opposition forces.

In February, the United Nations Security Council passed a resolution demanding that those involved in the ongoing conflict in Syria cease using barrel bombs in populated areas. Human Rights Watch later said that since the UN voted unanimously in favor of the measure, more than 650 locations in the city of Aleppo have seen damage in line with the effects of barrel bombs.