A massive auto bomb attack on a convoy carrying evacuees from besieged government-held towns in Syria killed at least 126 people, of them at least 68 chilren, and wounded hundreds, a monitor said on April 16.
The explosion shattered coaches and set cars on fire, leaving a trail of bodies, as the convoy waited in rebel territory near Aleppo, the BBC reported.
"In the complex and often dramatic situations of today's world, may the Risen Lord guide the steps of all those who work for justice and peace", he said.
Unfortunately, many of them didn't make it there alive and survivors were left stranded in the area for several hours after the attack. People were also being evacuated at the same time from two rebel-held towns as part of the "Four Towns Agreement" between the regime and the rebels.
Hundreds of people were wounded in the blast, said the Observatory, which relies on a network of sources inside Syria to monitor the conflict.
The convoy struck in the attack was carrying around 5,000 people from government-held towns as part of a deal between rebel forces and President Bashar Assad's government. "They were evacuating under a deal contingent on residents of two pro-rebel towns being allowed to evacuate".
A pro-opposition activist said insurgents blamed the delay partly on the fact that a smaller number of pro-government fighters had left the Shi'ite villages than was agreed.
The blast hit buses in the Rashidin area on Aleppo's outskirts.
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Maysa al-Aswad, a 30-year-old evacuee from Kafraya, said she was sitting on one bus with her six-month-old son Hadi and 10-year-old daughter Narjis when the blast shook the parked convoy.
The Syrian Civil Defense in Aleppo province, also known as the White Helmets, said their volunteers pulled at least 100 bodies from the site of the explosion.
"We must draw from this not only anger, but renewed determination to reach all the innocent children throughout Syria with help and comfort", he said.
Stephen O'Brien, United Nations relief co-ordinator, said he was "horrified" by the deadly bombing, and that while the UN was not involved in the transfer it was ready to "scale up our support to evacuees".
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres condemned the attack and called on all parties to ensure the safety and security of those waiting to be evacuated.
Residents of al-Foua and Kefraya, the Shiite villages, were waiting in the Rashidin area.
The coordinated evacuations delivered war-weary fighters and residents from two years of siege and hunger, but moved Syria closer to a division of its national population by loyalty and sect.
The evacuees from Madaya were expected to head to rebel-held Idlib, west of Aleppo. "Many people felt that they had been forced to leave", he said. "Numerous buses were totally destroyed", he said.
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