UN: Syrian Government and Rebels Committed War Crimes in Eastern Ghouta

On Wednesday, June 30, the United Nations announced that the Syrian government and rebels committed war crimes during their military operations in Eastern Ghouta, on the outskirts of Damascus. According to the Associated Press, the UN investigation commission referred to the five-year siege of Eastern Ghouta as the longest siege in modern history, affecting the lives of 265,000 people. The Syrian army and its allied forces began military operations last winter to seize areas controlled by rebels after years of siege. After two months of heavy bombardment, government forces managed to take control of these areas. Some rebel groups agreed with the Syrian government to exit the region. The UN investigation commission described the siege as a "brutal and medieval" method. Paulo Pinheiro, the head of the UN investigation commission, stated that civilians were indiscriminately targeted by Syrian government forces during the siege and were systematically deprived of food and medicine. He added that during the last two months of the siege, none of the warring parties made any effort to protect civilians. The 26-page UN report specified that Syrian government forces and their allies committed "war crimes" through widespread and systematic bombardments, depriving civilians of access to medicine and food. The report also mentioned rocket and mortar attacks by rebel groups on residential areas in Damascus and its suburbs. Hani Magali, one of the experts from the UN investigation commission, stated that even if pro-government forces attack people in Eastern Ghouta or keep them hungry, this cannot justify indiscriminate attacks on residential areas in Damascus. Armed groups and members of terrorist groups have committed war crimes with such actions. The UN report emphasized that by mid-April, when Eastern Ghouta was completely under the control of government forces, approximately 140,000 people were displaced from their homes. In this context, reports indicated that dozens of people, including children and women, were killed in a chemical attack by the Syrian government in Douma in Eastern Ghouta. The Syrian government and Russia denied the chemical attack in Douma. Eastern Ghouta, a collection of several towns on the outskirts of Damascus, was under rebel control from 2013 to 2018. Pro-Assad forces began the siege of this area in 2013. The Syrian government forces took control of the region in March of last year. The civil war in Syria has left hundreds of thousands dead and millions displaced.