A United Nations Team of Experts on the Rule of Law and Sexual Violence in Conflict has been working in Syria to support national institutions in investigating and prosecuting conflict-related sexual violence, while strengthening broader rule of law systems.
talking to UN News Last week, Sofia Candeias, the team’s Judicial Affairs Officer, highlighted both the progress made and the significant challenges that remain, particularly in addressing wartime sexual violence, which was widespread and systematically used during Syria’s brutal civil conflict.
“It is remarkable that in one year the Syrians have been able to put all this into practice,” he said.
Behind this progress, however, lies a much more fragile reality, defined by weakened institutions, widespread trauma, and a race against time to translate commitments into meaningful accountability.
The UN continues to support a Syrian-led and Syrian-owned political process, in accordance with Security Council resolutions 2254 and 2799.
Building from scratch
The UN Team of Experts, established by Security Council resolution 1888 in 2009, has been working in Syria since the fall of the Assad regime in December 2024. Its mandate is to support national institutions to strengthen the rule of law response to sexual violence and conflict.
Deployed three times, the team has worked closely with key Syrian agencies, including the National Commission for Transitional Justice, the Commission for Missing Persons, multiple ministries and civil society organizations.
Two UN experts on the rule of law and sexual violence in conflict (Sofia Candeias far left) meet with Syria’s Minister of Justice (second from right) to discuss the rule of law response.
This approach, which encourages national ownership while providing technical support, is essential to ensure that justice efforts are sustainable.
“Civil society organizations are really the backbone of what transitional justice will be,” Candeias said. “They are also the only way to truly listen to survivors.”
Syrian civil society groups have been documenting human rights violations for years, which can form the evidentiary basis for future prosecutions.
Systematic and unfathomable
One of the biggest challenges facing the justice process in Syria is also one of the least visible: the true scale of conflict-related sexual violence.
“The honest assessment is that we don’t know the full magnitude of the problem, and we probably never will,” Candeias said.
What is known is deeply alarming. Sexual violence was widespread and used systematically throughout the conflict, in detention centers, at checkpoints and during displacement. It was not incidental, but deliberate, he added.
“There are many more cases than have actually been documented,” he said, pointing to stigma as a major barrier preventing survivors from coming forward.
“This was a systematic enterprise and there was a deliberate tactic of attacking and using sexual violence to humiliate and punish civilians,” Candeias stressed.
Men and boys also attacked
While women and girls were disproportionately affected, men and boys were also targeted, especially during detention. A Syrian partner organization found that 98 percent of detained men and boys in their data set reported experiencing sexual violence, although even this figure likely does not represent reality as these are only documented cases.
Women and children walk through the Al Hol camp in Syria, a displacement site that is home to more than 30,000 people (file).
stay silent
Stigma is widely considered the biggest obstacle to justice.
It operates on multiple levels: internally, as survivors struggle with shame; within communities, where disclosure can provoke rejection; and socially, where silence often prevails. As a result, many survivors never speak.
To address this, the UN and its partners emphasize the need to create conditions in which survivors feel safe to seek help, which starts with public recognition and a proactive attitude, “looking for victims and ensuring that they have the conditions to come forward.”
“Recognizing the seriousness of sexual violence, and that it is a crime, puts the scene on the side of the perpetrators, which is the first step.” said Mrs. Candeias.
Equally important is the creation of “safe spaces” where survivors can access medical care, psychosocial support and legal assistance without fear of stigmatization or retaliation. However, what constitutes a safe space varies between communities, making local participation essential.
Progress without capacity
Despite institutional advances, Syria’s ability to deliver justice remains severely limited. Years of conflict have hollowed out the country’s medical, forensic and judicial systems.
Without adequate forensic capability, evidence cannot be properly collected and preserved. Without trained investigators and prosecutors, cases cannot move forward. Without psychosocial support, survivors are less likely to come forward.
“What we want is for citizens to be able to claim their rights, because a survivor is not only a survivor, but also an agent, a citizen,” Candeias said.
An ever-narrowing window
Added to these challenges is the decline in international financing.
Support for civil society organizations, many of which are leading documentation efforts and providing frontline assistance to survivors, has declined over the past year. Funding for national institutions also remains limited.
For Candeias, this trend is deeply worrying.
“With so much progress in one year, we now need the technical answer to be there,” he said. “The Syrians have done the groundwork, but we need more services.”
Extension workers in west-central Syria.
The risk is not only stagnation, but also reversal.
If resources do not materialize, evidence may be lost, survivors may withdraw, and initial trust in emerging institutions could erode, potentially delaying accountability efforts for years.
Crucial moment
Syria now finds itself at a critical juncture.
Its rapid progress on transitional justice presents a unique opportunity to demand accountability after years of conflict. But that opportunity remains fragile and depends on sustained support.
“This is the time to invest,” Candeias said. “We cannot fail to deliver on what they have managed to present.”