UN warns of possible ‘war crimes’ in Turkish-controlled Syria
GENEVA: Armed groups in the area of northern Syria controlled by Turkey
may have committed war crimes and other violations of international law,
the UN rights chief said Friday.
Michelle Bachelet, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human
Rights, said the situation in those areas of Syria was grim, with
violence and criminality rife.
In a statement, Bachelet’s UN Human Rights Office (OHCHR) said it had
noted an “alarming pattern in recent months of grave violations,” having
documented increased killings, kidnappings, unlawful transfers of
people, seizures of land and properties and forcible evictions.
The victims include people perceived to be allied with opposing parties
or as being critical of the actions of the Turkish-affiliated armed
groups, Bachelet’s office said.
Those affiliated groups have also seized and looted houses, land and
property without any apparent military necessity, said OHCHR.
Furthermore, increased infighting among the various Turkish-affiliated
armed groups over power-sharing was causing civilian casualties and
damage to civilian infrastructure.
Turkey controls large stretches of northeastern Syria through various
armed groups, and is conducting operations aimed at driving out Kurdish
militias and extremists.
In October last year, Turkish forces and their Syrian proxies occupied a
120-kilometer (75-mile) stretch of land inside the Syrian border from
Kurdish forces.
Ankara has also deployed forces in several military posts it established
in northwestern Idlib as part of a 2018 deal with regime ally Moscow,
while Turkey also controls a stretch of territory along its border in
neighboring Aleppo province following a series of military offensives
since 2016.Bachelet’s office said it had documented the abduction and
disappearance of civilians, including women and children.
It also said that from the start of the year until last Monday, it had
verified the deaths of at least 116 civilians as a result of improvised
explosive devices and explosive remnants of war, while a further 463
civilians were injured.
“I urge Turkey to immediately launch an impartial, transparent and
independent investigation into the incidents we have verified, account
for the fate of those detained and abducted by the affiliated armed
groups and hold accountable those responsible for what may, in some
instances, amount to crimes under international law, including war
crimes,” Bachelet said.
“This is all the more vital given that we have received disturbing
reports that some detainees and abductees have allegedly been
transferred to Turkey following their detention in Syria by affiliated
armed groups.”
Meanwhile Bachelet voiced concern that parties to the conflict in Syria were using essential services as a weapon.
“Impeding access to water, sanitation and electricity endangers the
lives of large numbers of people, a danger rendered all the more acute
amid fighting a global pandemic,” she said.
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