A/HRC/25/65 III. Violations in the treatment of civilians and hors de combat fighters A. Massacres and other unlawful killing3 1. Government forces and pro-government militia 20. Government forces continue to unlawfully kill those perceived as potential enemies, including civilians and hors de combat fighters, in violation of common article 3 of the Geneva Conventions. In Damascus countryside, Government forces tightened sieges on opposition-controlled areas, adopting increasingly brutal tactics against anyone perceived as a threat. Syrian forces outside Muadamiyah and Daraya killed persons passing through checkpoints. Killings were documented at the 4th Division checkpoint near Mezzeh Airport, as well as at Summariah and Sahnaya checkpoints. 21. Bedouins, particularly the Jamlan, Harb, Abadah and Na’im tribes, were targeted because of their perceived affiliation with the armed opposition. On 29 July 2013, three Bedouin men were arrested and executed by government forces near Bley, a military airport in southern Damascus. Syrian army soldiers shot two unarmed Bedouin men while patrolling Al-Bitariyah on 7 August. In early September, three Bedouin men were shot at close range at a checkpoint between eastern Ghouta and Damascus International Airport. 22. Government forces targeted sick and wounded persons, particularly men seeking medical treatment, regarding their wounds as indicative of participation in hostilities. In mid-September, persons receiving treatment for non-life-threatening injuries in Mowasat Hospital were found dead after soldiers entered their operating rooms. One male relative who witnessed the soldiers was asked for identification and shot upon discovery of his family ties to the victims. On 24 October, Free Syrian Army (FSA) fighters were escorting a convoy of injured civilians and fighters out of Al-Nashabeyah when they were ambushed. Soldiers from the 22nd Brigade approached and killed the wounded at close range. 23. During the campaign to recapture Homs governorate, government forces perpetrated unlawful killings. In mid-July, internally displaced persons in eastern Homs were routinely apprehended in Al-Furqlus and killed by soldiers of the 18th Division. On 21 July, government forces, supported by shabbiha, entered Sukhnah, eastern Homs, and conducted house raids, during which they shot eight civilians. In Houlah, during Ramadan, government forces conducted house searches and arrests. Bodies of people arrested during these raids were later returned to their relatives. 24. Government forces continue to control the majority of Hama governorate. On 7 August, government forces, supported by National Defence Forces, killed a man at the checkpoint near Al-Jadeedah. In late September, shabbiha raided a house in Jalmeh, killing a defector. 2. Non-State armed groups 1. Killings that amount to the war crime of murder 25. Two 15-year-old boys, abducted near Nubul (Aleppo) on 26 June were executed on 11 August 2013 in Mayer, when demands of the ISIS Emir in Tal Rifaat and Azaz were not met. Their corpses were mutilated, almost beyond recognition. A video of the execution 3 See also annex III. 7

Select target paragraph3

Connect to a paragraph
Connect to an entity
Disable highlights
Add to table of contents