The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on Tuesday expressed concern over the latest report by the International Commission of Inquiry on Syria to the UN Human Rights Council. Saudi Arabia also voiced concern over the scale of the crimes against humanity and war crimes being committed by the Assad regime and its allied militias against the Syrian people.
Fahd bin Abdullah Al-Mutairi, head of the Kingdom’s human rights committee delegation to the United Nations in Geneva, condemned the Assad regime’s air force targeting of a UN aid convoy near Aleppo which resulted in killing a number of innocent people and destroying about 17 trucks. The attack caused the suspension of UN aid convoys in Syria.
Al-Mutairi reiterated the Kingdom’s firm stance “to maintain a supportive atmosphere for the political transition process under United Nations auspices in order to reach a solution based on the Geneva principles and UN Security Council Resolution 2254.”
Echoing Saudi Arabia’s concern, the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) expressed grave concern over the violations and crimes committed in Syria, including forced disappearance and arbitrary detention.
The Council also expressed concern over the fate of dozens of thousands of detainees in the prisons of the Assad regime “who are detained in inhumane conditions and denied their legitimate rights in impartial and independence trials that meet the international standards.”
The GCC’s remark were made by the Permanent Representative of the Kingdom of Bahrain to Geneva and the current chairman of the GCC Bloc Ambassador Yousif Bucheeri who spoke on behalf of the GCC member States at the high-level panel discussion on the situation of human rights in Syria as per the fourth agenda item of the 34th Session of Human Right Council being convened at the United Nation Palace in Geneva.
Bucheeri stressed the need for the implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 2254 calling for the immediate lifting of sieges; the delivery of humanitarian aid to those in need; halting bombardment of populated areas; the release of detainees; and stopping extrajudicial executions.
He urged the international community to investigate the culture of impunity currently prevailing in Syria and to take necessary measures to support and enforce the efforts that have been taken to ensure accountability in Syria. (Source: Syrian Coalition’s Media Department + Agencies)
