UN: Syrian Coastal Events Involved Violations That May Amount to War Crimes

ARK News.. The United Nations Commission of Inquiry on Syria reported that the violence which took place in the coastal region last March was “systematic and widespread,” and involved violations “that may amount to war crimes.”

According to the Commission’s report, acts of violence committed by “members of the interim government forces and individuals operating with or alongside them” followed “a systematic pattern across multiple and widespread locations.”

The Commission noted that the incidents included killings, torture, inhumane treatment of the dead, large-scale looting, and the burning of homes — actions that may amount to war crimes.

At the same time, the Commission clarified that it “found no evidence of a government policy or plan to carry out such attacks,” and that armed groups loyal to the former regime also took part in the violations.

“The scale and brutality of the violence documented in our report is deeply alarming,” said Commission Chair Paulo Sergio Pinheiro, urging “the interim authorities to prosecute all perpetrators, regardless of their affiliation or rank.”

The Commission expressed concern over continued reports of violations, “including the abduction of women and arbitrary arrests.”

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