Terrorist Confesses to Murdering Dr. Eid and Opening Fire on Soldiers, Civilians, Funerals and Schools

Terrorist Bilal Abdelhalim Hassoun confessed to being a member of an US-Backed armed terrorist group that assassinated Dr. Hasan Eid a few days ago in Homs, in addition to opening fire on military personnel, civilians, funerals and schools.

In confessions broadcast by the Syrian TV on Wednesday, Hassoun confessed to murdering Dr. Hasan Eid at the request of a man called Jassem Afara because Dr. Eid worked at Homs National Hospital and treated injured people, adding that Afara recruited a group to keep watch over Dr. Eid two weeks prior to the assassination.

Hassoun, a blacksmith living in Bab al-Siba’a in Homs who was born in 1985 and was arrested four times for various charges including a narcotics charge, said that he planned the assassination with Bilal Oudeh, Bilal Awwameh, Yousef al-Hosni, Omar al-Hosni and Jassem Afara in Bilal Oudeh’s house.

He said that each member of the group carried a rifle and a pistol and took two cars early in the next morning to Jeb al-Jandali where Dr. Eid lives, with Hasoun and another gunman waiting on one corner while another pair waited at the opposite corner, while the rest waited two buildings away from the doctor’s house.

“When Dr. Eid came down from his house and turned on his car, Jassem Afara, Hilal al-Douri and Osama al-Dada approached him and opened fire on him, killing him,” Hassoun said, adding that Afara then ordered them to retreat and headed to Bab al-Siba’a.

Afterwards, where Hasoun was given a pistol to give to a man named Mamdouh al-Masri and was arrested on the way.

Hassoun confessed to opening fire on army personnel and civilians, saying that the group headed to an army checkpoint in two cars without license plates and opened fire on the military personnel for half an hour, with one of the terrorists firing RPG rounds.

He said that a man called Mahmoud Salameh aka Abu Khaled used to bring them firearms and RPG rounds from Wadi Khaled in Lebanon with the help of a man called Iyad Berakdar, adding that Afara paid for the weapons.

Hassoun said that he committed his crimes for money, starting with participating in protests in exchange for SYP 500 given out by Afara. Later, Afara gave him a pistol and camouflaged military clothing and instructed him to wear them and walk behind protestors and shoot at them to make people think that security forces are opening fire on protestors, promising him 1,000 pounds for each time he shoots at the protestors.

“After three days from shooting at protestors, Afara came and asked me to shoot at mourners in funerals taking place in Bab al-Siba’a area and I agreed… I then started attending each funeral and opening fire at mourners in exchange for 1,000 pounds for each time,” he said.

Hassoun said that Afara told them that no student must go to school, and so they used the two aforementioned cars to al-Istiklal School where Afara entered the teachers’ room and prevented the teachers from giving lessons, telling them that they will also prevent parents from sending their children to school. After that, they opened fire at the school’s gates to scare children from attending, and on the next day they went to another school and opened fire on its gates.