UN commission chair: No one cares about the lives of civilians in Syria
The chair of the United Nations Commission of Inquiry on Syria, Paulo Pinheiro, said yesterday, Monday, in an interview with the “Euronews” channel, that the number of civilian casualties in Syria exceeded 300,000 civilians.
According to a report issued by the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights stated that 306,887 civilians were killed since 2011, which is the highest figures so far, and it do not include the soldiers and combatants who killed in the war.
Pinheiro clarified that the thing the report reveals very clearly is the absence of the protection of civilians. He added there is no faction or any party to the conflict in Syria cares about the protection of the civilians.
Pinheiro expressed during the interview his regret at the double standards regarding hosting Syrian refugees compared to Ukrainian refugees in terms of treatment.
He said I do not object or criticize the generous support provided by Europe to the Ukrainian refugees, but I have been working within the Syrian file since the start of the crisis for 11 years, and I feel depressed, when comparing the treatment received by Ukrainians and Syrians. There is openness and generosity towards the Ukrainians that I don’t criticize at all because they deserve it. However, I would like very much that the same treatment will be applied to the Syrian refugees.
He stressed that the Commission of Inquiry has insisted for 11 years on the need to prosecute the perpetrators of war crimes and the crimes stipulated in International Criminal Court.
He considered that the court is unable to investigate the violations and crimes committed by the parties to the conflict in Syria against civilians, due to the failure of the Security Council to issue a resolution in accordance with Chapter VII of the United Nations Charter, due to the “veto” power, which thwarted all relevant draft resolutions.
