A/HRC/42/51 efforts, no final agreement on the composition and the date of the first meeting of the constitutional committee has been found. 20. In another significant political development, the President of the United States, Donald Trump, called for the recognition of the sovereignty of Israel over the occupied Golan Heights. The Syrian Government, the Astana guarantors and the League of Arab States called such a move illegal. In its resolution 497 (1981), the Security Council declared that the Israeli decision to impose its laws, jurisdiction and administration in the occupied Syrian Golan Heights was null and void and without international legal effect. 7 21. In the meantime, Israel continued to attack alleged Iranian and Hizbullah targets in the Syrian Arab Republic. During May and June, the Israeli Air Force stepped up attacks against pro-government positions in southern Quneitra and Homs in response to alleged rocket attacks from the Syrian Arab Republic. The Commission received reports of Israeli air strikes on 1 July on Damascus, Rif Dimashq and Homs Governorates, allegedly leading to civilian deaths and injuries (see S/2019/545). 22. In early July, the President of the Syrian Arab Republic, Bashar al-Assad, reshuffled the country’s security apparatus. The changes covered the directors of the principal security services, including the Air Force Intelligence Directorate, State security and the criminal and political security services. Moreover, the Head of the National Security Bureau, Ali Mamlouk, was appointed Vice-President for Security Affairs. 23. Also in July, SDF signed an action plan with the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict to end and prevent the recruitment and use of children, as well as to identify and separate boys and girls within the group’s ranks and to put in place protection and disciplinary measures related to child recruitment and use. IV. Protection of civilians 24. After more than seven years of brutal armed conflict, 8 the most salient feature of the hostilities throughout the Syrian Arab Republic remains the wilful non-compliance with international law. Moreover, all warring parties continue to ignore or deny arbitrarily assurances of protection, including guarantees of sustained and unhindered humanitarian assistance to vulnerable civilian populations. Meanwhile, the deliberate targeting of civilian-inhabited areas and protected objects flared up during the period under review. 25. The Commission’s findings clearly indicate that there are varying situations concerning the rule of law in the different areas of the country and that, in general, citizens still feel unsafe and unprotected by the State. For example, citizens are prone to abduction for ransom or for political gain, extortion and acts of retribution. Those who have lost their properties or their livelihoods have little recourse to justice, while those in detention risk illtreatment and, in some instances, execution. A. Dayr al-Zawr 26. Following the cessation of major military operations in Hajin (A/HRC/40/70, para. 16), the Commission continued to investigate the final stages of operation Al-Jazeera Storm, conducted by SDF with support from the international coalition. The campaign was directed against the remaining ISIL pockets in areas south of Hajin, in particular in and around Baghuz. Throughout the operations, battles were characterized by hundreds of coalition air strikes, heavy artillery bombardment by SDF, coalition forces and Iraqi forces 7 8 6 own dialogue towards the common purpose of a credible and sustainable political settlement of the Syrian conflict that can enjoy international legitimacy. See Security Council briefing on the Syrian Arab Republic by the Special Envoy, 28 February 2019. Available at https://dppa.un.org/en/securitycouncil-briefing-syria-special-envoy-geir-o-pedersen. See also General Assembly resolution 73/100. The Commission first determined the existence of a non-international armed conflict in the Syrian Arab Republic beginning in February 2012 (see, e.g., A/HRC/21/50).