Incident Summary:
12/14/2014: Assailants opened fire on the Syrian Army Wadi al-Dayf Base near Murrat al-Numan town, Idlib governorate, Syria. This was one of two attacks targeting military bases in Idlib on the same day. At least 180 people, including 100 soldiers and 80 assailants, were killed and an unknown number of others were injured in the assault that ended the following day, on December 15, 2014. Al-Nusrah Front and Ahrar al-Sham of the Islamic Front (Syria) claimed responsibility for the incidents. Additionally, sources attributed the attacks to the Free Syrian Army.
Overview
GTD ID:
201412140028
When:
2014-12-14
Country:
Syria
Region:
Middle East & North Africa
Province/administrative
region/u.s. state:
Idlib
City:
Near Murrat al-Numan
What
Attack Information
| Type of Attack () |
Armed Assault |
| Successful Attack? () |
Yes |
Target Information ()
| Target Type: Military |
|---|
| Name of Entity |
Syrian Army |
| Specific Description |
Wadi al-Dayf Base |
| Nationality of Target |
Syria |
Additional Information
| Hostages |
No |
| Ransom |
No |
| Property Damage |
Yes |
| Extent of Property Damage |
Unknown |
| Value of Property Damage |
Unknown |
How
Weapon Information
| Type |
Sub-type |
| Explosives |
Projectile (rockets, mortars, RPGs, etc.) |
| Firearms |
Other Gun Type |
| Weapon Details |
|---|
| Tanks, heavy weapons (Artillery) were used in the attack. |
Additional Information
| Suicide Attack? | No |
| Part of Multiple Incident? | Yes |
| Criterion 1 () |
Yes |
| Criterion 2 () |
Yes |
| Criterion 3 () |
No |
| Doubt Terrorism Proper () |
Yes |
| Alternate Designation () |
Insurgency/Guerilla Action |
| Additional Information |
Casualty numbers for this attack represent an equal division of a cumulative total of killed and wounded across incidents 201412140028 and 201412140030. Casualty numbers for this incident conflict across sources. Following GTD protocol, the most recent reliable estimates are reported here. |
Who
Perpetrator Group Information
| Group Name |
Group Sub-name |
Claimed Responsibility |
| Al-Nusrah Front |
|
Yes (Confirmed: Unknown; Mode: Posted to website, blog, etc.) |
| Free Syrian Army |
|
No |
| Islamic Front (Syria) |
Ahrar al-Sham |
Yes (Confirmed: Unknown; Mode: Posted to website, blog, etc.) |
Perpetrator Statistics
| Number of Perpetrators |
Unknown |
| Number of Captured Perpetrators |
0 |
Casualty Information
| Total Number of Casualties |
90 Fatalities |
| Total Number of Fatalities |
90 |
| Number of U.S. Fatalities |
0 |
| Number of Perpetrator Fatalities |
40 |
| Total Number of Injured |
Unknown |
| Number of U.S. Injured |
0 |
| Number of Perpetrators Injured |
Unknown |
Sources
Sources
| "Syria rebels capture key Idlib army bases," Al Jazeera, December 15, 2014. |
| "Syria rebels capture Idlib army base," BBC, December 15, 2014. |
| "Syria: Al-Qaeda Nusra Front kill 100 soldiers and capture military bases in blow to Assad army," International Business Times UK, December 16, 2014. |
Criteria
Criteria 1
The act must be aimed at attaining a political, economic, religious, or social goal. In terms of economic goals, the exclusive pursuit of profit does not satisfy this criterion. It must involve the pursuit of more profound, systemic economic change.
Criterion 2
There must be evidence of an intention to coerce, intimidate, or convey some other message to a larger audience (or audiences) than the immediate victims. It is the act taken as a totality that is considered, irrespective if every individual involved in carrying out the act was aware of this intention. As long as any of the planners or decision-makers behind the attack intended to coerce, intimidate or publicize, the intentionality criterion is met.
Criterion 3
The action must be outside the context of legitimate warfare activities. That is, the act must be outside the parameters permitted by international humanitarian law (particularly the prohibition against deliberately targeting civilians or non-combatants.
Doubt Terrorism Proper
The existence of a "Yes" for "Doubt Terrorism Proper?" records reservation, in the eyes of GTD analysts, that the incident in question is truly terrorism. Such uncertainty, however, was not deemed to be sufficient to disqualify the incident from inclusion into the GTD. Furthermore, such a determination of doubt is subsequently coded by GTD analysts as conforming to one of four possible alternative designations: 1) Insurgency/Guerilla Action; 2) Internecine Conflict Action; 3) Mass Murder; or 4) Purely Criminal Act.
Alternate Designation
The determination of "yes" for "Doubt Terrorism Proper" by GTD analysts is coded as conforming to one of four possible alternative designations: 1) Insurgency/Guerilla Action; 2) Internecine Conflict Action; 3) Mass Murder; or 4) Purely Criminal Act.
Successful Attack
Success of a terrorist strike is defined according to the tangible effects of the attack. For example, in a typical successful bombing, the bomb detonates and destroys property and/or kills individuals, whereas an unsuccessful bombing is one in which the bomb is discovered and defused or detonates early and kills the perpetrators. Success is not judged in terms of the larger goals of the perpetrators. For example, a bomb that exploded in a building would be counted as a success even if it did not, for example, succeed in bringing the building down or inducing government repression.
Type of Attack
This field captures the general method of attack and often reflects the broad class of tactics used. It consists of the following nine categories:
- Assassination
- Armed Assault
- Unarmed Assault
- Bombing/Explosion
- Hijacking
- Hostage taking (Barricade Incident)
- Hostage taking (Kidnapping)
- Facility / Infrastructure Attack
- Unknown
Target Information
This field captures the general type of target. It consists of the following 22 categories:
- Abortion Related
- Airports & Airlines
- Business
- Government (General)
- Government (Diplomatic)
- Educational Institution
- Food or Water Supply
- Journalists & Media
- Maritime (includes Ports and Maritime facilities)
- Military
- NGO
- Other
- Police
- Private Citizens & Property
- Religious Figures/Institutions
- Telecommunication
- Terrorists
- Tourists
- Transportation (other than aviation)
- Unknown
- Utilities
- Violent Political Parties
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