A/HRC/22/59
133. The State Security Directorate and a military office are legitimate military targets.
Should the majority of the 44 dead be civilians, it is likely that a finding could be made that
the attack was disproportionate to the direct and concrete military advantage anticipated
from the attack, and therefore unlawful. Investigations are on-going.
134. There was an explosion at the University of Aleppo, near its halls of residence and
its architecture faculty on 15 January 2013. Over 80 people are said to have been killed.
Both the Government forces and anti-Government armed groups denied responsibility. As
of 23 January, investigations are on-going with preliminary findings indicating that the
university was hit by a missile rocket.
B.
Assassinations
135. On 6 November, Mohammed Osama Laham, brother of the Speaker of the
Parliament, was killed by gunmen in Midan, a neighbourhood of Damascus. Laham
appeared to have no military function and would not, on the information available, be
considered a legitimate military target.
Findings
136. As the conflict in Syria has become characterised by the proliferation of armed
factions, there has been an increase in acts of wanton and unrestrained violence, which are
clearly intended to spread terror among the civilian population. The perpetrators of such
acts cannot always be determined. Such conduct is in violation of the rules and customs of
international humanitarian law and may result in the instigation of sectarian tensions. This
trend risks becoming a malignant feature of the conflict.
137. The above incidents may be crimes in domestic law and where the perpetrators are
parties to the conflict, may also amount to war crimes.
106
GE.13-10627
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