Amnesty International says Syrian crackdown may constitute crimes against humanity

[News_Editor]

Amnesty International says Syrian crackdown may constitute crimes against humanity

2011-07-06 15:39:11 GMT+7 (ICT)

DAMASCUS (BNO NEWS) -- Methods being used during a Syrian security operation in the western town of Tell Kalakh may constitute crimes against humanity, Amnesty International said in a report on Wednesday.

The report by Amnesty International documents deaths in custody, torture and arbitrary detention which took place in May when Syrian army and security forces mounted a broad security sweep, lasting nearly a week, against residents of the town of Tell Kalakh near the Lebanese border.

The findings in the report are based on interviews carried out in Lebanon and by phone with more than 50 people in May and June. Amnesty International has not been allowed to enter Syria, as are many journalists, making it a difficult story to cover.

According to the report, the security operation began on May 14 when the army and security forces entered Tell Kalakh following a demonstration which called for the downfall of the regime. "The accounts we have heard from witnesses to events in Tell Kalakh paint a deeply disturbing picture of systematic, targeted abuses to crush dissent," said Philip Luther, Amnesty International's Middle East and North Africa Deputy Director.

Amnesty International documented at least one death on May 14, which was of 24-year-old Ali al-Basha who was reportedly killed by snipers. Even the ambulance carrying his body came under fire, the report said. Forces also allegedly fired on fleeing families.

"Most of the crimes described in this report would fall within the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court. But the UN Security Council must first refer the situation in Syria to the Court’s Prosecutor," said Luther.

The following days saw scores of male residents, including some aged over 60 and boys aged less than 18 years, rounded up and detained, the report says. Every family from Tell Kalakh that Amnesty International met in Lebanon told them that they had at least one relative in detention.

Most of those detained were tortured, some even as they were being arrested, according to accounts. In one incident, soldiers transporting detainees counted how many they had arrested by stabbing lit cigarettes on the backs of their necks.

Detainees told Amnesty International that Military Security, one of the security forces which detrained people, used the shabah (ghost) method, where the detainee is forced into a stress position for long periods and beaten, in these cases by being tied by the wrists to a bar high enough off the ground to force the detainee to stand on the tip of their toes.

Twenty year-old 'Mahmoud', who was arrested on May 16 and released after nearly a month in detention, was held for around five days at the Military Security detention facility in Homs. "Each day [was] the same story. They tied me up in the shabah position and applied electricity to my body and testicles. Sometimes I screamed very loudly and begged the interrogator to stop. He didn't care," he told Amnesty International.

At least nine people died in custody after being arrested during the security operation in Tell Kalakh, according to witnesses. Eight of these men - some of whom had been active in demonstrations - were shot at and wounded as they were ordered out of a house, and were then taken away by soldiers.

It was only around two weeks later that relatives were told to go to a military hospital to identify the bodies of the eight men. Witnesses said the bodies had marks on them which suggested torture, including cuts to the chest, long vertical slashes on the thighs and what seemed to be gunshot wounds on the back of the legs.

A forensic pathologist analysed a photograph of one of the men, Abd al-Rahman Abu Libdeh, for Amnesty International and concluded that he seemed to have sustained violent injuries to the face, shoulders and neck while still alive.

Some of the family members who went to identify the bodies of their sons said they were forced to sign a document stating that their sons were killed by armed gangs in order to receive the body. Families were not told the circumstances and causes of death.

According to Amnesty International, an unknown number of people arrested during the security operation in Tell Kalakh still remain in detention, including a 17-year-old boy.

"The willingness of the international community to take action on Libya in the name of human rights has highlighted its double standards on Syria," said Luther. "Despite President Bashar al-Assad's talk of reform, there is little evidence so far that the Syrian authorities will respond to anything but concrete international measures.â€

In mid-March, pro-democracy demonstrations began in Syria and have continued across the country, which has been ruled by the Baath Party since 1963. Protesters are demanding the ouster of President Bashar al-Assad, who took over his father in 2000.

Assad previously said that the recent events in the country are a conspiracy against national unity. The Syrian government has repeatedly claimed that the violent acts have been instigated by terrorists who use military uniforms and weaponry to pose as soldiers while attacking citizens.

However, the European Union, the United Nations and other international agencies have reported the killing of at least 1,600 protesters due to the violent crackdown on demonstrations by security personnel.

-- © BNO News All rights reserved 2011-07-06

[kuffki]

may constitute? when does it?

considering that the media is is not allowed in the country, i have a feeling the number of killed is double if not triple.

[JemJem]

Why is the West mostly quiet regarding Syria while it is bombs for Libya ?! Shameful double standards !

I am sure all of you can think of possible answers to that question

Jem

[Steely Dan]

Well on one hand attack oil rich Libya and the Arab world won't complain as they hate Gaddafi as he is decidedly too secular for them. On the other hand attack Syria with far less oil and you get an almost certain middle east war with Iran and Hezbollah piling in and Israel becoming involved for certain.

P.S This war is imho inevitable and should include regime change in Tehran as well as Damascus, but it is not an enticing prospect all the same.

[kuffki]

Why is the West mostly quiet regarding Syria while it is bombs for Libya ?! Shameful double standards !

I am sure all of you can think of possible answers to that question

Jem

because Libya is isolated while Syria can and will create complications across entire middle east, including but not limited to Israel, Lebanon, Turkey, Jordan, Egypt etc etc