Head of the National Commission for Detainees and Missing Persons, Yasser Al-Farhan, welcomed the report issued by the German Foreign Ministry on the situation in Syria and which indicated that serious human rights violations are still part of the daily life.
Al-Farhan underscored that the report corresponded with the Commission’s regular reports confirming that the Assad regime continues with the arbitrary arrests, torture and crimes against civilians, indicating that this stands as a major obstacle to the return of refugees to Syria.
Al-Farhan stressed the need to push for a political solution in the country through the implementation of all UN resolutions on Syria, most notably the Geneva Communique of 2012 and UN resolutions 2118 and 2254. He also stressed the need to create a safe environment under a transitional governing body with full executive powers, as well as to address the issue of militias and security services.
The report by the German Foreign Ministry indicated that “by August 2020, the number of missing persons in Syria had reached 148,000 persons, the number of missing persons had increased by 4,000 compared to 2019, and that the Assad regime is responsible for 90% of cases.”
The report also said that “between 14,000 and 17,000 persons have died due to torture.” It also said that 1,412 cases of arbitrary arrests took place between January and October of 2020, including against 36 children and 31 women.
The report made it clear that it is not possible to guarantee a safe return to any part of Syria for any group of people. It noted that although combat operations receded in some parts of the country, the general security situation remains precarious, let alone the extremely dire humanitarian and economic conditions. (Source: SOC’s Media Department)
