Syrian President Bashar
al-Assad's forces are using "scorched earth methods" in cities across
the country to crush a one-year-old revolt against his regime, Human Rights
Watch charged on Thursday.
"City after city, town
after town, Syria's security forces are using their scorched earth methods
while the [UN] Security Council's hands remain tied by Russia and China,"
said HRW's Sarah Leah Whitson.
"One year on, the
Security Council should finally stand together and send a clear message to
Assad that these attacks should end," said the New York-based group's
Middle East director.
Moscow and Beijing have
since October blocked two Security Council draft resolutions on the crisis in
Syria on the grounds that they were unbalanced and aimed at regime change.
HRW said in a statement
that "accounts from witnesses reveal significant destruction and a large
number of deaths and injuries of civilians in Syria's bombardment of the city
of Edleb."
Syrian activists have compiled
a list of 114 civilians killed since security forces launched an assault on the
city in northwest Syria on March 10, it said.
HRW said government forces
had "used large-caliber machine-guns, tanks, and mortars to fire
indiscriminately at buildings and people in the street" to capture the
city which had been in rebel hands for months.
Edleb fell to government
forces on Tuesday night, two weeks after the regime stormed the Baba Amr
district of Homs city, in central Syria, following a month-long blitz that
activists said left hundreds dead.
"After they entered
Edleb, government forces detained people in house-to-house searches, looted
buildings, and burned down houses," HRW said, citing witnesses.
The rights group urged
alleged atrocities in Syria to be referred to the International Criminal Court
"as the forum most capable of effectively investigating and prosecuting
those bearing the greatest responsibility."
No comments:
Post a Comment