‘Repeated attacks of violence’ put Syria’s reconstruction at risk: independent human rights researcher

In December 2024, Bashar Al-Assad’s regime was overthrown by a coalition of opposition groups, led by the Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham militia, sparking a large outpouring of relief that the civil war, which lasted more than a decade, had come to an end, marking the return of more than a million Syrian refugees.

After being excluded from the country during the Assad years, the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Syria – appointed by the UN Human Rights Council in 2011 to investigate and document human rights violations and abuses committed during the conflict – was granted full access to the country by President Ahmed al-Sharaa’s transitional government.

In August, the Commission published a report on the wave of violence that has hit the coast and central western Syria since January 2025, which concluded that acts that may constitute war crimes were committed, including murder and torture.

Massacres in Latakia and beyond

An estimated 1,400 men, women and children died in massacres in the governorates of Latakia, Tartus and Hama, including at the hands of members of the government security forces.

Updating the General Assembly’s Third Committee on Thursday, which focuses on human rights issues, Pinheiro said investigators had conducted on-site visits to Latakia and Tartus in June this year, and more recently to Suweyda and its surrounding areas.

Pinheiro reported that his team continues to receive reports of extrajudicial executions, torture and ill-treatment and forced displacement of Alawite civilians in Damascus and Western governorates.

In Sweida, more than 30 villages in predominantly Druze areas have been completely depopulated, looted and burned, and Commission investigators met with many families and witnesses who recounted the brutal murders of loved ones torn from their homes.

Stage set for more violence

There is growing distrust, he said, between the Druze and Bedouin communities and the interim government, which needs to hold the perpetrators of the killings accountable and ensure that such acts are never repeated.

“The Commission is seriously concerned that the stage is set for more violence if swift action is not taken“Warned Mr. Pinheiro. “Rebuilding trust will require dedicated efforts towards dialogue, inclusion and justice for all victims.”

The UN-appointed independent rights expert expressed growing concern about violence and discrimination directed against women, citing multiple reports of women and girls abducted by unknown armed actors, some of whom were allegedly subjected to sexual violence and forced marriage.

“In many cases, despite reporting their disappearance to local authorities, families report that no steps have yet been taken to investigate or follow up.”

Pinheiro called on UN Member States to stop Israel’s advance into southern Syria, which he said has led to the forced displacement and arbitrary detention of civilians, and airstrikes that have reportedly caused civilian casualties: “the intervention of a third state risks further inflaming the conflict and inflicting even greater suffering on the Syrian people.”

Noting recent steps taken by several States and the EU to ease sanctions against Syria, Mr Pinheiro said such steps are welcome and urged Member States to continue supporting the 2025 humanitarian appeal for the country, which is currently only 19 per cent funded.