A/HRC/22/59 approached UNRWA for assistance in Lebanon and another 3,300 have fled to Jordan. It is essential that neighbouring States adhere to the principle of non-refoulement. 41. In November 2012, the Syrian Humanitarian Forum appealed for funds for aid operations, concluding that the deepening humanitarian situation, coupled with the loss of life and displacement, required an urgent response. Humanitarian appeals have, however, been funded at only 50 per cent. In December 2012, responding to the Syrian refugee crisis, the United Nations system declared a level 3 emergency.7 III. Violations in the treatment of civilians and hors de combat fighters A. Massacres8 42. Acting upon the request of the Human Rights Council to investigate all massacres,9 the commission adopted the following working definition of massacre: An intentional mass killing of civilians not directly participating in hostilities, or hors de combat fighters, by organized armed forces or groups in a single incident, in violation of international human rights or humanitarian law.10 43. Specific investigative resources were dedicated to respond to the request of the Human Rights Council. 1. Government forces and affiliated militia 44. The massacres described below were investigated within the current reporting period.11 45. First-hand information was collected concerning a military operation in Jedaydet Artouz on 1 August 2012. During the operation, soldiers conducted house-to-house searches, mainly in the Sunni-majority southern parts of the city. After the operation, residents discovered the bodies of approximately 60 male residents, who appeared to have been summarily executed. In one case, residents found a group of 17 dead bodies of adult males, most of whom had their hands tied behind their back and had been shot at close range. There are reasonable grounds to believe that Government soldiers perpetrated the war crime of murder. 46. Government forces shelled Daraya from 20 to 24 August, targeting anti-Government armed group fighters. Following the shelling, Government forces moved into the town together with members of the Shabbiha. Many young men, some of whom may have been defectors or anti-Government armed group members who had put down their arms, 7 8 9 10 11 10 A level 3 (L3) emergency is a major humanitarian crisis triggered by a natural disaster or conflict that requires system-wide mobilization. See also annex IV. HRC resolution 21/26, para. 19. Massacres include multiple instances of the war crime of murder, the war crime of attacking civilians, and the war crime of sentencing or execution without due process. When murder is committed as part of a widespread or systematic attack directed against a civilian population, perpetrated pursuant to or in furtherance of a State or organizational policy, the commission of massacres may amount to the crime against humanity of murder. The massacre in Tremseh on 12 July, previously investigated by the commission, is included with additional findings in annex IV. GE.13-10627