ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Turk, on Sunday called for an “immediate” end to the killing of civilians in western Syria, as tensions continue.
“The killing of civilians in coastal areas in northwest Syria must cease immediately,” Turk said in a press release, adding, “We are receiving extremely disturbing reports of entire families, including women, children and hors de combat fighters being killed,” he added.
Of note, hors de combat individuals refers to non-combatants, such as the captured, sick, wounded, or otherwise incapacitated individuals, who are entitled to protection under international law.
Turk also condemned the “executions on a sectarian basis by unidentified perpetrators,” including members of the interim government’s security forces and “individuals associated” with the regime of toppled Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights on Sunday reported that around 1,018 people - mostly civilians - have been killed in western Syria over the past four days. These casualties resulted from clashes between loyalists of the ousted Assad regime and security forces affiliated with the new leadership in Damascus.
The UK-based Observatory added that the fatalities included “745 civilians killed in cold blood in sectarian massacres,” along with 125 government-affiliated forces, and 148 Assad regime loyalists.
Turk on Sunday urged the interim government in Damascus to conduct “prompt, transparent and impartial investigations into all the killings and other violations,” emphasizing that “those responsible must be held accountable, in accordance with international law.”
Following a swift offensive, a coalition of opposition groups led by Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) in early December toppled Assad’s regime. In late January, the group’s leader Ahmed al-Sharaa was appointed as Syria’s interim President.
After assuming power, Sharaa pledged to uphold the rights of all ethnic and religious groups. However, his administration has faced repeated criticism for its treatment of Syria’s minority groups.
In response to the ongoing violence, Sharaa on Sunday ordered the establishment of an "independent national committee" to investigate the deadly clashes in western Syria. He also announced plans to form another high-level committee aimed at "preserving civil peace" and "listening" to the people of Syria’s coastal areas following several days of deadly violence.
