The United Nations Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Syria has detailed ongoing grave human rights abuses in Syria, including areas controlled by the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army, in a report released on Tuesday.
The report reveals a disturbing pattern of arbitrary detention, torture, and ill-treatment, primarily targeting Kurdish individuals suspected of having ties to Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG), the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), or the Syrian government.
The Commission found reasonable grounds to believe that members of the SNA have continued to arbitrarily deprive individuals of their liberty, a suspected war crime of torture and cruel treatment.
Furthermore, the killing of five Kurdish civilians in the town of Jindires (Cindirês) in the Afrin (Efrîn) district in March is being investigated as a potential war crime of murder.
Despite the initiation of measures towards accountability, including investigations into the Jindires killings, deaths in detention, and rape cases, the report highlights a lack of information on restitution for the victims.
The UN Commission reminded Turkey – as the nation backing the SNA factions – that it remains bound by its obligations under international human rights and humanitarian law, including on the prevention of torture.
The report also sheds light on escalating military activities and bombardments between the SDF and the Turkish Armed Forces, surging after a lull following the major regional earthquakes in February. The conflicts resulted in civilian casualties and injuries, particularly in Aleppo, Hasakah, and Raqqah governorates. Ayn al-Arab, and nearby villages including Tall Tamr, were frequent battlegrounds.
The UN report details a disturbing 18 January incident in which a likely Turkish guided air-to-ground missile, seemingly fired from a drone, struck a pickup truck outside a rural supermarket on the Qamishli-Malkiyah road. The attack claimed the lives of two men inside the vehicle and a civilian man and an 11-year-old boy inside the shop. Several other civilians, including children, sustained injuries.
Another incident on 20 June, which remains under investigation, was reported to involve a similar alleged Turkish strike, killing three civilians, including two women and one man, and injuring another.
The report argues that the airstrike on 18 January aligns with previous Turkish drone attacks, and given the timing and location of the strike, the responsible party should have been aware that civilians might be present. The attacker failed to take all feasible precautions to avoid or minimise incidental loss of civilian life, injury to civilians, and damage to civilian objects, the UN Commission said.
