The UN Syria Commission of Inquiry has cautioned that Syria is currently going through a surge of violence not witnessed before 2020. Parties to the conflict have attacked civilians and infrastructure on several frontlines in actions that most certainly qualify as war crimes, and an unparalleled humanitarian catastrophe is driving Syrians into ever-deeper despair. The combat in Syria has escalated at its highest rate in four years since October. A concerted international effort is needed to keep the fighting inside Syrian territory given the unrest in the region. A ceasefire is vitally needed in Syria as well, according to Commission Chair Paulo Pinheiro.
Understanding the situation in Syria
Pinheiro stated, “The Syrian people cannot withstand any further escalation of this catastrophic, drawn-out conflict. Over 90% of people currently live in poverty, the economy is collapsing under the weight of increasing sanctions, and rising levels of lawlessness are encouraging extortion and predatory behavior by militia and the military forces. On October 5, at a military school graduation ceremony in the government-controlled city of Homs, there were multiple explosions that resulted in the deaths of at least 63 persons, including 37 civilians, and numerous injuries. This marked the beginning of the rise in violence in Syria. In response, the Syrian Government and Russian troops bombarded at least 2,300 locations in regions under rebel control in just three weeks, killing and wounding hundreds of people. Their indiscriminate strikes, which may constitute war crimes, have persisted since they targeted prominent and well-known hospitals, schools, marketplaces, and camps housing internally displaced people.
The role of the UN Commission of inquiry
Commissioner Hanny Megally stated, “Cluster munitions were once more used by Syrian Government forces in heavily populated areas, perpetuating the destructive and illegal patterns that we have previously documented.” Approximately 120,000 individuals fled the October assaults; many of them had already been uprooted many times, notably by the terrible earthquakes. The fact that more Syrians than ever before were applying for refugee in Europe in October of last year should come as no surprise, according to Megally. With more than 13 million Syrians unable to return to their homes, Syria continues to have the worst displacement issue in the world. Tensions between some of the six foreign militaries operating in Syria have risen since the beginning of the Gaza offensive, particularly between Israel, Iran, and the US, heightening fears of a broader clash. Israel is said to have bombed the airports in Aleppo and Damascus, momentarily stopping crucial UN humanitarian air supplies, as well as facilities and troops in Syria that are allegedly connected to Iran at least 35 times. According to reports, pro-Iranian militias assaulted US outposts in northeastern Syria more than a hundred times. In retaliation, the US launched airstrikes against these same pro-Iranian groups in eastern Syria.
Desperate need for ceasefire
Meanwhile, the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) claimed responsibility for an attack on Ankara in October, prompting the Turkish military to step up operations against the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in northeastern Syria. International humanitarian law was broken by Turkish aircraft strikes on power installations, which left almost a million people without access to electricity or water for weeks. Targeted aerial assaults that followed a pattern of Turkish drone operations also claimed the lives of civilians. These assaults can qualify as war crimes. The disintegration of military alliances and intense internal strife between the SDF and a coalition of tribal fighters in Dayr-al-Zawr contributed to the bloodshed in the northeast by resulting in many illegal attacks that claimed civilian lives. Long-standing complaints that the financially stressed Kurdish-led self-administration is not delivering necessary services to protect fundamental rights are the main source of fuel for the ongoing clashes.
Barriers to ceasefire implementation
In addition, ISIL (the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, sometimes referred to as Daesh) increased the intensity of its operations in central Syria, attacking both military targets and civilians in cities in what are probably war crimes. Additionally, recent reports suggest that people are once more dying in the middle Syrian desert while attempting to earn a livelihood by picking valuable truffles. Additionally, there have been more clashes between drug traffickers and Jordanian authorities along the Syrian-Jordanian border, with people caught in the crossfire and suffering injuries.
Conclusion
In conclusion, The Commission recorded further fatalities in captivity, notably in the notorious Sednaya jail, and the Syrian government persisted in disappearing, torturing, and mistreating its captives. Four months after the International Court of Justice ordered the Government to stop torturing and destroying evidence, extorting families by purposefully impeding their attempts to find the location and fate of their loved ones who are incarcerated.