Syrian activists have released photos of young children inside a cage, mirroring the burning of Jordanian pilot Muath al-Kasasbeh at the hands of terror group ISIS in protest of the government of President Bashar al Assad.
The young children, dressed in orange jumpsuits and holding banners condemning Assad's actions, were placed in cage in the ruins of the city of Douma. Activists have claimed that the Assad regime continues to bomb its own people and has previously used chemical weapons on children-allegations the president has denied.
According to the Independent, the demonstrations were also carried out to draw the West's attention to the fate of Syrian children.
"We saw your media about the burning Jordanian pilot but we didn't see it when Douma children were burnt," one sign in Arabic read.
The sobering demonstration mirrors the manner in which al-Kasasbeh was murdered by the extremist group in January. At the time, the incident prompted outrage, with Jordan's President Abdullah declaring "relentless war" on ISIS and vowing to bomb the group's targets until his troops "ran out of bullets."
In Syria, an ongoing civil war has seen the deaths of over 220,000 people, according to the U.N., and close to half the country's population has been displaced.
In February alone, clashes between anti-government rebel groups and the government of Assad left at least 183 people dead. While the heavily populated city of Douma has been shelled and targeted by air strikes, state media has claimed that offensives there were against "terrorists".
Assad's regime has been accused of committing mass murder by human rights groups; in January, forensics experts claim to have found evidence to prove Assad guilty of "systematic torture and killing" of 11,000 detainees in the form of disturbing photos.
As previously reported by the Gospel Herald, the photographs portrayed images of dead bodies, the majority of which were men between the ages of 20-40. Out of all the dead bodies, 60% of them were emaciated, having their stomachs, faces, and legs in a concave position. Some of the bodies reveal bruising and bleeding so severe that the victim's skin is a mixture of black, blue, pink, and purple. Other victims had marks that show signs of strangulation and electrocution while others were missing eyes. Those that appeared emaciated and had no marks were suspected to have died from starvation.
In December, photographs highlighting the horrors experienced by victims of the Assad regime were put up at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C.
"They show a side of the Syrian regime that hasn't really been seen. You might have heard about it, read about it, but when you're confronted with these images, they're impossible to ignore," said Cameron Hudson, director of the museum's Center for the Prevention of Genocide.
