The “dire needs” of Syrians have been systematically ignored during the 12 years of conflict in the country, the UN Commission of Inquiry on Syria warned on Tuesday. In its latest report, the United Nations Human Rights Council (OHCHR) body found that attacks on civilians, escalating fighting, economic decline and human rights violations persist, despite the country’s re-admission to the League of Arab States. The continued war in Syria is a “monument to the failure of diplomacy” said Paulo Pinheiro, Chair of the Commission of Inquiry. Speaking in Geneva at the launch of the report, Mr Pinheiro called on all parties to the conflict to cease the attacks on civilians following the recent wave of demonstrations. He urged the government in Damascus to respond positively to Syrians’ legitimate aspirations and rights before the country “plunges deeper into escalating violence and economic decline”.
The Commission Chairperson reiterated the need to review “unilateral coercive measures” imposed by the European Union, the United States, Canada, Australia and Switzerland from 2011 onwards, while calling for the easing of sanctions since the earthquake on 6 February 2023 to be maintained. He pointed out that at the time of the earthquake, the Commission received “multiple reports of aid diversion, extortion and corruption,” and documented “obstruction and interference in aid delivery” in the immediate aftermath of the earthquake.
The “Government and other parties needless hindered lifesaving aid” and “no party answered our call for a ceasefire. They continue shelling and they continue the war without any problems,” Mr Pinheiro said.
Citing the report, Mr Pinheiro explained that a single airstrike on 25 June killed or injured over 37 civilians at an outdoor vegetable market in Idlib in northwest Syria held by opposition forces that should have been observable to the military coordinators of the attack. He added that of the 15 attacks documented in the earthquake-affected area, several may constitute war crimes.
Commenting on the impact on ordinary Syrians, Commissioner Hanny Megally described the experience of truffle gatherers in central Syria: “We're seeing an increase, [in] people fighting over economic needs and survival and that results in violence, abductions.” People fighting over the truffle market is “an example of the country descending into that state of insecurity”, he said.
In a positive development, Mr. Pinheiro noted that families seeking clarity on the fate of detained, disappeared and missing loved ones had received “long-awaited welcome news” following the establishment of the Independent Institution on Missing Persons in Syria by the General Assembly in June. “I think if we have positive news to share with you, it is precisely the establishment of this mechanism on the missing,” he said.
Mr. Megally voiced concerns over beliefs that “peace is returning to Syria” and that
“Normalization is being talked about”. He warned that conversely, the report documents “a rise in unrest and a rise in conflict”.
STORY: LATEST REPORT ON SYRIA - HRC COMMISSION OF INQUIRY
TRT: 04:31”
SOURCE: UNTV CH
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH
ASPECT RATIO: 16:9
DATELINE: 12 SEPT 2023, GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
SHOTLIST
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR
UN Human Rights Spokesperson Jeremy Laurence on deadly attacks by the Rapid Support Forces in Sudan
1
1
1
Edited News | OCHA , OHCHR , UNITED NATIONS , WFP , WHO
Gaza: Famine “irrefutably” confirmed, UN humanitarians unite in plea for aid access
Famine has been confirmed in Gaza Governorate by the world’s top authority on food security and will spread further within the Strip unless fighting stops and much more aid is allowed in, UN humanitarians said on Friday.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR
UN Human Rights Spokesperson Jeremy Laurence on the eighth anniversary of military assault on the Rohingya in Myanmar
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR
UN Human Rights Spokesperson Jeremy Laurence on the declared famine in Gaza Governorate
3
36
1
2
Edited News , Statements , Images , Conferences | HRC , OCHA , UNOG
A record 383 aid workers were killed last year with hundreds more wounded, kidnapped and detained, the UN’s top aid official said on Tuesday in a call for accountability, at a solemn ceremony in Geneva to mark World Humanitarian Day.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR
UN Human Rights Office spokesperson Thameen Al-Kheetan made the following statement at today’s biweekly press briefing in Geneva:
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR
“In Gaza, the Israeli army has intensified its attacks in the north of the strip,” UN Human Rights Office spokesperson Thameen Al-Kheetan told the biweekly press briefing in Geneva on Tuesday.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , OCHA
Gaza: Aid insufficient to avert ‘widespread starvation’ as Israeli military ramp-up forces more people to flee
The small trickle of aid entering Gaza is totally insufficient to alleviate starvation and displacement in the Strip, UN humanitarians said on Tuesday.
1
1
1
Edited News | WHO
Gaza: Hospitals continue to overflow with people injured while seeking food - WHO
As besieged Palestinian civilians face widespread malnutrition and starvation, hospitals in the Strip are increasingly overwhelmed by the influx of victims of shootings and other injuries at food distribution areas, warns the World Health Organization.
1
1
1
Edited News | UNHCR , WHO , UNMAS
Urgent help is needed to halt a deadly cholera outbreak that is sweeping across Sudan, UN agencies said on Friday, while warning that communities continue to be terrorized by parties to the conflict even as they flee violence.
2
2
1
2
Press Conferences , Edited News , Images | UNEP
Negotiations got under way at UN Geneva on Tuesday to agree on a legally binding treaty to curb plastic pollution, with delegates from nearly 180 countries attending.
1
1
1
Edited News | OCHA , UNICEF
Gaza: Hundreds of trucks per day of free aid needed “for months”, in addition to commercial supplies - OCHA
Despite the tactical pauses Israel introduced last week to allow some safe passage for humanitarian convoys, the amount of aid that has entered Gaza remains by far insufficient for the starving population, and UN trucks continue to face impediments on their way to delivering aid.