UN RIGHTS CHIEF CONDEMNS RAMPANT USE OF TORTURE BY SYRIAN FORCES, OPPOSITION GROUPS

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From: UNNews <UNNews@un.org>
Date: 14 Apr 2014 12:00:00 -0400
Subject: UN RIGHTS CHIEF CONDEMNS RAMPANT USE OF TORTURE BY SYRIAN
FORCES, OPPOSITION GROUPS
To: news11@ny-mail-p-lb-028.ptc.un.org

UN RIGHTS CHIEF CONDEMNS RAMPANT USE OF TORTURE BY SYRIAN FORCES,
OPPOSITION GROUPSNew York, Apr 14 2014 12:00PMThe United Nations human
rights chief today condemned the rampant use of torture, including
allegedly of children, in detention facilities across Syria by
Government forces and some armed opposition groups.

"In armed conflict, torture constitutes a war crime. When it is used
in a systematic or widespread manner, which is almost certainly the
case in Syria, it also amounts to a crime against humanity,"
<"http://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/Media.aspx?IsMediaPage=true&LangID=E">said
High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay.

"I urge the Government and armed opposition groups in Syria to
immediately halt the use of torture and ill-treatment, and to release
all those who have been arbitrarily detained in conditions that
clearly breach international human rights standards. Those detained
must be treated humanely."

The comments come as her office (OHCHR) issued a paper containing
detailed testimony from victims and witnesses, describing a broad
pattern of torture and ill-treatment against individuals in Government
facilities, as well as documenting reports of torture by some armed
groups.

The analysis is based on interviews by OHCHR with individuals who have
spent time in detention facilities in Syria during the conflict.

"Upon arrival at a detention facility, detainees are routinely beaten
and humiliated for several hours by the guards in what has come to be
known as the 'reception party'," the paper states, citing accounts of
torture and ill-treatment by various components of the Government's
security apparatus.

"Men, women and children have been routinely picked up from the
street, their homes and workplaces, or arrested at Government-manned
checkpoints," it adds. "Many are activists - often students - as well
as lawyers, medical personnel and humanitarian workers, and some just
happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time."

A 30-year-old university student described how he was beaten, how his
beard was pulled out in clumps, his feet burned and his toenails torn
off with pliers at an Air Force Intelligence facility in Hama, where
he was interrogated daily for more than a month.

Two victims, a man and a woman, described the use of sexual violence
against them. One 26-year-old woman told of repeated night-long
interrogation sessions, during which she was beaten with electric
cables and had her teeth pulled out. On one occasion, a security
officer took her and another woman to a room where they were raped.

The paper also makes reference to cases of individuals who died in
detention, in circumstances which suggest that torture was the cause.

"Occasionally, families are asked to sign papers stating that their
relative was killed by armed opposition groups, and to immediately and
discreetly bury the body," it states.

Reports of torture by armed opposition groups appear to be on the rise
since 2013, particularly in Al Raqqa, northern Syria, the paper
states, although documenting allegations against such groups is
particularly challenging due to constantly evolving alliances and
changes in memberships, power structures and areas under their
control.

However, testimony collected from victims suggests that those most at
risk of being detained and tortured by some armed opposition groups
are activists attempting to document human rights violations and
individuals perceived to be pro-Government or affiliated with other
armed opposition groups.

Former detainees described abhorrent conditions in Government
detention centres, including one case where 60 people were crammed
into one cell, with a hole in the corner to be used as a toilet. One
60-year-old man who spent three months in different detention centres
described how, every day, "cellmates were taken for 30 or 45 minutes
of interrogation and came back with their faces bleeding, barely able
to walk, and with open wounds that remained untreated and became
infected."

Ms. Pillay stressed that international law unequivocally prohibits the
use of torture, at all times and under all circumstances.

She said it was crucial that those in positions of authority publicly
condemn the use of torture and other ill-treatment and ensure that
those found guilty of perpetrating torture are held accountable. She
stressed that all victims of torture and ill-treatment should be
provided with redress, including fair compensation and rehabilitation.

The High Commissioner also reiterated her request to the Government to
allow regular and unannounced access to all detention facilities to
impartial international observers, including her office, the
Commission of Inquiry on Syria and relevant UN independent human
rights experts, to enable them to effectively monitor the
situation.</P>Apr 14 2014 12:00PM
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