PRESS RELEASE : UN HRC54 – UK Statement on Syria [September 2023]

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 22 September 2023.

Statement for the Interactive Dialogue with UN Commission of Inquiry on Syria. As delivered by UK Ambassador to the WTO and UN, Simon Manley.

Thank you, Mr Vice President,

Thank you, Commissioners for your typically clear and detailed articulation of the human rights violations, war crimes and crimes against humanity that so tragically persist in Syria.

We must heed the evidence: the conflict in Syria is not over. The deaths of thousands in the February earthquakes brought no respite from attacks on innocent people by the regime and its allies.

Life-saving humanitarian aid for the same people who face indiscriminate shelling is at the whim of the regime. Once again, permissions for humanitarian access expire abruptly in the peak of winter. The international community must work together to seek sustainable, unhindered, immediate humanitarian access to those most in need.

Meanwhile, returning refugees face blackmail, arbitrary detention and ill-treatment by Syrian security forces. Many, including children, have gone missing on return. The regime says it would welcome the return of refugees from neighbouring countries. On the basis of this evidence, it cannot be trusted.

Civilian deaths, aid restrictions, arbitrary detention. Bashar al Assad has no regard for the lives of the Syrian people. We must not abandon them. So I urge our fellow members of this Council to join efforts to secure accountability for these crimes.

Thank you.