Situation of Human Rights in the Syrian Arab Republic

A/HRC/RES/55/22View PDF

Who created this mandate?

A Resolution of the Human Rights Council, under agenda item 4Human rights situations that require the Council's attention, published in 2024.

What else is in this group?

34 documents · 2011–2025

Newer documents in this group exist (latest: 2025).

2025A/RES/80/224Situation of human rights in the Syrian Arab RepublicCompare with earlier document
2025A/HRC/RES/58/25Situation of human rights in the Syrian Arab RepublicCompare with earlier document
2024A/RES/79/185Situation of human rights in the Syrian Arab RepublicCompare with earlier document
2024A/HRC/RES/57/21Situation of human rights in the Syrian Arab RepublicCompare with earlier document
2024A/HRC/RES/55/22Situation of human rights in the Syrian Arab RepublicCompare with earlier document

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What subjects does this mandate have?

8 topics

Accountability Commissions of Inquiry Human Rights Human Rights in Armed Conflicts Human Rights Violations Humanitarian Assistance Internal Security Syrian Arab Republic

What does this mandate say?

23 operative paragraphs

Expresses grave concern that the crisis in the Syrian Arab Republic continues and that the conflict has been marked by consistent patterns of gross violations and abuses of international human rights law and violations of international humanitarian law, strongly condemns all violations and abuses and the ongoing human rights situation, demands that all parties to the conflict immediately comply with their respective obligations under international humanitarian law and international human rights law, and emphasizes the need to ensure that all those responsible for such violations and abuses are held to account;

Welcomes the work and the important role played by the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic in supporting essential accountability efforts by investigating all alleged violations and abuses of international human rights law since March 2011 in the Syrian Arab Republic in order to establish the facts and circumstances and to support efforts to ensure that all perpetrators of abuses and violations, which may include those responsible for crimes against humanity and war crimes, are identified and held accountable, demands that the Syrian authorities cooperate fully with the Human Rights Council and the Commission of Inquiry by granting the Commission immediate, full and unfettered access throughout the Syrian Arab Republic, and urges all States to cooperate with the Commission in the discharge of its mandate;

Also welcomes the progress made regarding international accountability and notes the importance of further ongoing proceedings, such as those held in Koblenz, Germany, and efforts by States and internationally mandated institutions, including the International, Impartial and Independent Mechanism to Assist in the Investigation and Prosecution of Persons Responsible for the Most Serious Crimes under International Law Committed in the Syrian Arab Republic since March 2011, to investigate conduct in the Syrian Arab Republic and, where possible, to prosecute crimes committed there in order to bring the truth to light and perpetrators to justice, in this regard notes the landmark conviction and sentencing by a court in Germany, in January 2022, of a former director of the Syrian intelligence service for crimes against humanity as part of a widespread or systematic attack against the civilian population in the Syrian Arab Republic, also notes that evidence from the Commission of Inquiry and the International, Impartial and Independent Mechanism was used as evidence during the investigation and trial, and recalls the authority of the Security Council to refer the situation in the Syrian Arab Republic to the International Criminal Court;

Further welcomes the legal proceedings initiated by Canada and the Kingdom of the Netherlands at the International Court of Justice to hold the Syrian Arab Republic accountable for torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment of its own people and for breaches of its obligations under the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, urges the Syrian regime to immediately implement the order of the Court of 16 November 2023 indicating provisional measures, including that it take all measures within its power to prevent acts of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment and ensure that its officials or persons subject to its control do not commit any such acts, as well as effective measures to prevent the destruction and ensure the preservation of related evidence, and acknowledges the reliable and credible reporting of the Commission of Inquiry referenced by the Court in its order and in the legal proceedings initiated by Canada and the Kingdom of the Netherlands;

Calls upon all parties, in particular the Syrian authorities, to maintain rapid, unhindered, safe and sustainable humanitarian access and to ensure that humanitarian assistance reaches its intended recipients, in this regard calls for the vital continuation, for as long as needed, of consent to the cross-border operations at Bab al-Salam and Ra‘i, in addition to Bab al-Hawa, for which there is no equivalent in terms of scope and scale for delivering humanitarian aid and assisting vulnerable Syrians and survivors of the earthquakes, and calls upon all parties to facilitate immediate, rapid, unhindered and sustained humanitarian access, including cross-line access, to all parts of the Syrian Arab Republic;

Demands that all parties to the conflict comply with their applicable obligations under international human rights law and international humanitarian law and facilitate, and do not hinder, full, timely, immediate, unrestricted and safe humanitarian access, and notes that humanitarian aid must be delivered on the basis of need;

Deeply deplores the fact that the civilian population continues to bear the brunt of the conflict and that civilians, and objects indispensable to their survival, continue to be the target of deliberate and indiscriminate attacks, including with prohibited weapons and munitions, by all parties to the conflict, notably by the Syrian regime and its State and non-State allies;

Expresses grave concern in this regard at the continued and escalating violence, including air strikes and the use of cluster munitions, and the resulting civilian deaths and casualties, including children, and the destruction of civilian infrastructure, including medical facilities and schools, and cultural property across the Syrian Arab Republic, demands that all parties comply immediately with their respective obligations under international human rights law and international humanitarian law, and emphasizes the need to ensure that all those responsible for violations and abuses are held to account and that civilians are protected;

Strongly reiterates the call of the Secretary-General for a global ceasefire, the call of the Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for Syria for a complete, immediate and nationwide ceasefire throughout the Syrian Arab Republic and the recommendation made by the Commission of Inquiry to immediately institute a permanent ceasefire in order to provide the space for Syrian-led negotiations, including the full and meaningful participation of women, and for the restoration of respect for human rights, and urges all parties to the conflict to direct their efforts to enact such a ceasefire;

Strongly supports the efforts of the Special Envoy to make progress in the political process and to advance further aspects of Security Council resolution 2254 (2015) of 18 December 2015, deplores the stalling of efforts to engage meaningfully and in good faith with the political process, and urges all parties to the conflict, and the Syrian authorities in particular, to advance all aspects of resolution 2254 (2015);

Welcomes the progress made towards establishing the Independent Institution on Missing Persons in the Syrian Arab Republic, as outlined by the Secretary-General in his report on the implementation of the decision taken by the General Assembly in its resolution 77/301 of 29 June 2023 establishing the Independent Institution on Missing Persons, under the auspices of the United Nations, to clarify the fate and whereabouts of all missing persons in the Syrian Arab Republic, to provide adequate support to victims, survivors and the families of those missing and to ensure the full and meaningful participation and representation of victims, survivors and the families of missing persons in the Syrian Arab Republic in its operationalization and work, including engagement with women’s organizations and other civil society organizations in a regular and sustained manner, and calls upon all parties to the conflict and other relevant actors to cooperate in good faith with the Independent Institution;

Notes the unique impact on the families, in particular women and children, of those subjected to enforced disappearance, arbitrarily detained or otherwise missing in the Syrian Arab Republic, which includes the often terrifying and demoralizing search for their loved ones, as well as the financial and legal challenges and stigma owing to persisting gender inequalities and discriminatory laws and practices;

Reiterates its call for all States, relevant United Nations bodies, international organizations and civil society to coordinate further efforts and proactively focus attention on the issue of missing persons in the Syrian Arab Republic, including those who have been subjected to enforced disappearance, and to support the right of the families of missing persons to know the truth, and recalls the importance of promoting the full and meaningful participation of victims, survivors and their families in all efforts aimed at searching for the disappeared in the Syrian Arabic Republic;

Urges the Syrian authorities to share further information regarding the 344,684 detained and convicted persons who they claim to have benefited from “amnesty laws”, with regard to the documented executions during the Tadamun massacre, calls upon all parties to the conflict, but particularly the Syrian authorities, to cease all forms of abuse of detainees, including but not limited to torture of detainees in Syrian military intelligence facilities, physical abuses, mistreatment and sexual and gender-based violence, to grant appropriate international monitoring bodies and medical services immediate access, without undue restrictions, to detainees and detention facilities, including all Syrian military facilities referred to by the Commission of Inquiry in its reports, to provide families with information on and return the remains of those missing and to cease reprisals against families for seeking further information on their missing and arbitrarily detained loved ones, and highlights the recent recommendations of the Commission in this regard;

Expresses deep concern that nearly 7 million refugees have been forced to flee the Syrian Arab Republic and that nearly 7 million people have been displaced within it during the course of the conflict, and at reports of demographic and social engineering throughout the country, calls upon all parties to the conflict to immediately cease activities that could cause further displacement, including any activities that may amount to war crimes or crimes against humanity, recalls the findings of the Commission of Inquiry and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights that the Syrian Arab Republic does not yet offer a safe and stable environment for the safe, voluntary and dignified return of refugees or for those displaced inside the country, calls upon the Syrian authorities to protect returning refugees and internally displaced persons from human rights violations and abuses and to help to create the conditions necessary for the safe, voluntary and dignified return of refugees, and notes in this regard the vulnerability of returnees due to gendered laws, including but not limited to discriminatory property and inheritance practices affecting women and the forced conscription of men;

Strongly condemns the use of chemical weapons in the Syrian Arab Republic, demands that all parties desist from any use or preparation of chemical weapons in the Syrian Arab Republic, expresses its strong conviction that those responsible for the use of chemical weapons must be held accountable, and welcomes in this regard the measures adopted in decision C-28/DEC.12 of 30 November 2023 of the Conference of the States Parties to the Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production, Stockpiling and Use of Chemical Weapons and on Their Destruction;

Also strongly condemns all acts of sexual and gender-based violence and abuse in the Syrian Arab Republic, as documented by the Commission of Inquiry in its reports to date, recognizes the need for a survivor-centred approach to preventing and responding to such violence and abuse, calls for immediate and non-discriminatory access to services, such as medical and psychosocial support, to be provided to all victims and survivors of such crimes, and for every effort to be made to ensure justice for those who have suffered as a result of such crimes, including accountability and reparations, and urges all parties to the conflict to respect and protect the full enjoyment by women and girls of their human rights and to heed the recommendations made by the Commission of Inquiry;

Urges all parties to immediately respect and protect the full enjoyment by children of all their human rights, and to prevent, and to protect children from, all forms of violence, including sexual and gender-based violence, child, early and forced marriage, exploitation, violations and abuses, including the recruitment and use of children in the armed conflict, in contravention of international law, and attacks on schools, in contravention of international law;

Also urges all parties to ensure that children affected by the conflict receive appropriate assistance, including access to identity documentation, education, justice and health care, including the provision of mental health and psychosocial support, strongly condemns the use of schools for military purposes, in contravention of international law, and encourages the Commission of Inquiry to continue its investigation and documentation of violations and abuses of the rights of the child;

Decides to extend the mandate of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic for a period of one year;

Requests the Commission of Inquiry to give an oral update to the Human Rights Council during an interactive dialogue at its fifty-sixth session and to present an updated report during an interactive dialogue at both the fifty-seventh and fifty-eighth sessions of the Council;

Reaffirms its decision to transmit all reports and oral updates of the Commission of Inquiry to all relevant bodies of the United Nations, also reaffirms its recommendation that the General Assembly submit the reports to the Security Council for appropriate action, expresses its appreciation to the Commission for its briefings provided to members of the Council and Assembly, and recommends the continuation of such briefings;

Decides to remain seized of the matter.

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