'UN urges Syrian regime to do more for justice for Druze, Alawites and minority groups'

The United Nations has expressed deep concern over ongoing acts of violence in Syria, including extrajudicial killings, abductions, sexual assault, arbitrary detention, looting, and the destruction of homes. The UN calls on the Syrian government to intensify efforts to halt attacks targeting minority communities, particularly the Druze and Alawite populations, as the country approaches the anniversary of the Assad regimes fall.

UN Human Rights Office officials acknowledged that the Syrian authorities have made some progress, such as holding trials linked to massacres in Sweida and surrounding Druze villages. However, spokesperson Thameen Al-Kheethan emphasized that alarming reports of violence persist.

Although national commissions addressing transitional justice and missing persons have been established, along with investigative bodies examining massacres, incidents of summary executions, arbitrary killings, abductions, sexual violence, forced evictions, property confiscation, and suppression of free expression continue unabated.

Since the collapse of the previous regime, hundreds have died due to shootings, stabbings, stone attacks, shelling, and hand grenade explosions, Thameen stated. Responsibility lies with security forces from the interim authorities, groups connected to them, former government affiliates, local armed factions, and unidentified armed individuals.

In Sweida, clashes between Druze fighters, Sunni Bedouin tribes, and government forces have resulted in significant casualties, leaving bodies at local hospitals and highlighting the ongoing instability in the predominantly Druze region.

Thameen noted that former armed groups were integrated into new security forces without rigorous human rights vetting, a process critical to preventing further abuses.

Reports indicate that attacks against Druze communities have been organized by regime authorities, with evidence including prisoner testimonies, use of official vehicles during assaults, and Syrias acknowledgment of security officials involvement in Sweida and other southern villages. Additionally, Druze residents are compelled to smuggle essential medications into the region due to restrictions imposed by authorities, and medical equipment destroyed in earlier attacks has not been replaced.

Author: Maya Henderson