A/HRC/28/69 255. Attacks against medical facilities and personnel amount to serious violations of Common Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions and war crimes. Such tactics have long-term repercussions on the ability of entire communities to treat war-related and chronic healthcare problems. The criminalization of medical assistance under anti-terrorism laws issued on 2 July 2012 contravene the customary international humanitarian law rule that under no circumstances shall any person be punished for carrying out medical activities compatible with medical ethics, regardless of the person benefiting therefrom. 256. Government forces continue to disregard their international legal obligations to refrain from attacking cultural objects and sites and to not use them for military purposes. In continuing to use the Aleppo Citadel, a World Heritage site, as a military base to bombard the Old City of Aleppo, the Government has endangered the site and disregarded Security Council Resolution 2139, adopted on 22 February 2014, which calls on all parties to act immediately to save Syria’s rich societal mosaic and cultural heritage, and take appropriate steps to ensure the protection of Syria’s World Heritage Sites. 2. Non-State armed groups Islamic State of Iraq and Al-Sham 257. In the course of ISIS’ assault on Ayn al-Arab (Kobane) in September 2014, the city’s hospitals were shelled, contributing to the dire humanitarian situation and displacement of civilians.f 258. The deliberate destruction of an Armenian church in Dayr Az-Zawr in September 2014 demonstrates a continuation of the trend documented in the Commission’s thematic paper “Rule of Terror: Living Under ISIS in Syria”. g 259. The abduction, torture and execution of journalists, media activists and humanitarian aid workers by ISIS have been documented since June 2013 in Aleppo. Both Syrian and international journalists and aid workers have been killed by ISIS in a deliberate attempt to control the flow of information in the areas under its controls. Journalists and activists working to document the violations and abuses suffered by their local communities under ISIS have been denied their special protection under international humanitarian law and have been disappeared, detained, tortured and killed. 260. ISIS’ conducts attacks that violate its obligations under customary international humanitarian law. In a deliberate effort to assert control, ISIS has deliberate attacked protected objects and persons, amounting to war crimes. J. Sieges and denial of humanitarian access 1. Government forces 261. The Government continues to conduct its military operations in a manner which disregards the humanitarian needs of the civilian population. Government authorities prohibit the inclusion of medical and surgical supplies in humanitarian convoys making cross-line deliveries. In Damascus, the impact of the eastern Ghouta siege on food security has harmed children. The siege is enforced through checkpoints encircling eastern Ghouta, manned by elite units, including the 3rd, 4th Divisions, and Republican Guard. Government forces shelled Hamouriyah in eastern Ghouta between March and September, worsening f g See paragraphs 279-281, below. See A/HRC/27/CRP.3, paragraphs 25, 29 and 31. 59