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	5 years on, Syria is a country destroyed with civilians paying the biggest price by Paulo Pinheiro International Commission of Inquiry on Syria   22 February 2016   Almost five years on, Syria is a country destroyed with civilians paying the biggest price: UN Commission of Inquiry on Syria   As the conflict in Syria is poised to enter its sixth year, civilians bear the brunt of intensifying hostilities conducted by an ever-increasing number of warring parties. As their country is reduced to ruins around them, Syrian men, women and children – often the objects of deliberate attack – are fleeing their homes in an uncertain and often perilous search for safe haven.   In its latest report, the Commission of Inquiry on Syria details the catastrophic destruction of civilian infrastructure caused by five years of war, including medical care and educational facilities, public spaces, electricity and water installations. Cultural heritage sites of importance not only to Syria, but also to the world, are being destroyed and damaged through deliberate and incidental attacks. The report further explores the rending of Syria’s social fabric. Under attack, under siege, and increasingly divided, trust between communities has been eroded.   “We are seeing an overwhelming yet consistent intensification of external military involvement in Syria by all parties, with devastating consequences for civilians and various communities. With the intensification of airstrikes, there are few safe places for civilians. They are exposed more than ever to violence,” said Commission Chair Paulo Sérgio Pinheiro. “Relevant Security Council resolutions remain largely unheeded and unimplemented.”   Aerial bombardments by pro-Government forces of areas not controlled by the Government have caused hundreds of civilian casualties, mass displacements, and destruction of vital civilian infrastructure.   All warring parties – pro-Government forces, anti-Government armed groups, and the terrorist groups ISIS and Jabhat al-Nusra – carry out indiscriminate attacks by firing shells onto civilian-inhabited areas under control of the opposition. ISIS continues to kill, maim, and spread terror amongst the civilian population, with its use of suicide bombs and improved explosive devices. Attacks on schools and hospitals have killed healthcare staff and teachers, as well as patients and students. Through these attacks, the warring parties effectively deny the civilian population medical care and education.   The report, the Commission’s eleventh to the Human Rights Council, draws on 415 interviews with victims and eyewitnesses in and outside the country, collected between July 2015 and January 2016. It finds that crimes against humanity continue to be committed by Government forces and by the terrorist group ISIS. The commission of war crimes by belligerents is rampant.   “The damage wrought on Syria by this war cannot be measured solely by loss of life and the physical destruction of the country,” said Commissioner Vitit Muntarbhorn. “The war has also devastated the nation of Syria, ripping asunder the ties that bind its communities and cultures together.”   Civilians have been deliberately targeted for attacks – including ground and air assaults, as well as sieges - where belligerents conflated a community’ ethnic and/or religious background and its perceived political loyalties. In some cases, there has been intentional targeting of communities, notably by ISIS. In some cases, external intervention has exacerbated ethno-sectarian tensions.   In areas controlled by ISIS, Syrian women and girls continue to live under unbearable restrictions, their access to education, work and freedom of movement severely curtailed or completely denied. Thousands of Yazidi women and girls who were captured in Iraq in August 2014 and brought to Syria continue to be held in sexual slavery, bought and sold like chattel. ISIS continues to forcibly recruit captured Yazidi boys, some as young as seven.   Belligerents in Rif Damascus, Idlib, and Dayr az-Zawr governorates continue employing sieges, while the primary victims of this brutal tactic remain the nearly 400,000 vulnerable civilians trapped inside densely populated districts where food, water, medicine and electricity are scarce.   Owing to the escalation in hostilities countrywide, an additional 4.5 million Syrian men, women, and children are confined to areas where humanitarian actors do not have regular access.   The report emphasises the need for concerted and sustained international action to find a political solution to end the violence and to stop the rampancy of war crimes and grave violations of human rights.   “Humanitarian space is shrinking daily, while flagrant violations of human rights and international humanitarian law continue with blatant impunity,” said Commissioner Carla Del Ponte. “The call for peace is now more urgent than ever, but momentum must be sustained to ensure an all-inclusive, Syrian-led process. Accountability is an essential part of this process.”   Ms. Del Ponte stressed that Resolution 2139 underlined the need to end impunity and reaffirmed the necessity of bringing perpetrators to justice.   http://www.ohchr.org/en/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=17078&LangID=E   Feb. 2015   All sides in Syria killing thousands of detainees in crimes against humanity, UN reports.   Thousands of detainees have been killed while in the custody of the warring parties in Syria over the past four and a half years, with thousands held by the Government beaten to death or dying from torture and anti-Government groups brutalizing and executing prisoners in war crimes and crimes against humanity, a United Nations commission reported today.   “Nearly every surviving detainee has emerged from custody having suffered unimaginable abuses,” Paulo Pinheiro, Chair of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Syria, said of those held by the Government in releasing the report in Geneva – Out of sight, out of mind: Deaths in detention in the Syrian Arab Republic.   “For ordinary Syrians, the spectre of arrest or abduction and the near-inevitable horrors that follow have paralyzed communities across the country,” he said.   The report, which calls on the Security Council to adopt targeted sanctions against persons, agencies and groups suspected of responsibility or complicity in deaths, torture and enforced disappearance, is based on 621 interviews and extensive documentary material on killings by all parties between 10 March 2011 and 30 November 2015.   It details how civilians have been arbitrarily arrested, unlawfully detained, taken hostage, or kidnapped, with eyewitness accounts and documentary evidence strongly suggesting that tens of thousands of people are detained by the Government at any one time. Thousands more have disappeared after initial arrest by State forces or while moving through Government-held territory.   It describes, sometimes in gruesome depictions, how thousands of detainees held by the Government have been beaten to death or died as a result of injuries sustained due to torture. Many others perished as a consequence of inhuman living conditions and deprivation of medical care.   These killings and deaths, the report stresses, occurred with high frequency over a protracted period of time and in multiple locations controlled by the Syrian State apparatus, with significant logistical support involving vast State resources.   Government officials intentionally maintained such poor conditions of detention for prisoners as to have been life-threatening, and were aware that mass deaths of detainees would result. These actions, in the pursuance of a State policy, amount to extermination as a crime against humanity, the report adds.   The Commission determines that the Syrian Government has also committed the crimes against humanity of murder, rape or other forms of sexual violence, torture, imprisonment, enforced disappearance and other inhuman acts. These violations constitute war crimes, where the acts were committed after the start of the armed conflict.   As anti-Government armed groups and terrorist groups have come in control of territory, they too have held prisoners under brutal conditions, the report says. Some anti-Government armed groups established makeshift places of detention where captured Government soldiers were ill-treated, and executed.   “We have heard shocking evidence of how people have been summarily executed following illicit trials, while some individuals taken hostage died in the custody of armed groups”, said Commissioner Vitit Muntarbhorn.   Jabhat Al-Nusra and anti-Government armed groups control places of detention, holding Government soldiers as well as civilians. The torture and deaths of detainees have been recorded in some of these facilities. Both the terrorist group Jabhat Al-Nusra and some anti-Government armed groups committed the war crimes of murder, cruel treatment, and torture, the report found.   In areas under control of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) the terrorist group subjected detainees to serious abuses, including torture and summary executions. Detainees were frequently executed after unauthorized courts issued death sentences. ISIL has committed the crimes against humanity of murder and torture, and war crimes.   Through the report, the Commission hopes that efforts will be strengthened to find a path to justice for Syrian civilians, as well to assist prosecutorial and judicial authorities seeking to bring cases, whether at a national or international level.   “Accountability for these and other crimes must form part of any political solution,” said Commissioner Carla del Ponte. “Instead, these violations are being committed with total impunity.”   * Access the report via the link below.   04-02-2016   European Parliament declares atrocities ISIS commits against religious minorities constitute crimes against humanity   MEPs urge the international community to take urgent action to counter the systematic mass murder of religious minorities by the so-called Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) or Daesh, in a resolution voted on Thursday. The text wraps up a 20 January debate with EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini, in which many MEPs called for measures to protect all religious and minority groups against ISIS attacks.   MEPs reiterate their strong condemnation of ISIS/Daesh and its egregious human rights abuses, deliberately targeting Christians, Yazidis, Turkmen, Shi’ites, Shabak, Sabeans, Kaka’e and Sunnis who do not agree with their interpretation of Islam. These violations amount to “war crimes”, “crimes against humanity” and “genocide” according to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC), they add.   The resolution, calls on the EU to establish a permanent Special Representative for Freedom of Religion and Belief and urges all countries in the international community to prevent war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide within their territory. All EU member states should update their legal and jurisdictional systems in order to prevent their nationals and citizens travelling to join ISIS/Daesh and other terrorist organisations and also ensure that, should they do so, they face criminal court proceedings as soon as possible, adds the text.   Note: ISIS has been committing systematic and widespread violence and abuses of international human rights law and humanitarian law against members of minority groups, including Christians, Yazidis, Turkmen, Shi’ites, Shabak, Sabeans, Kaka’e and Sunnis in Iraq and Syria. According to the United Nations, "in some instances, these may amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity."   http://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/news-room/20160129IPR11938/MEPs-call-for-urgent-action-to-protect-religious-minorities-against-ISIS Visit the related web page
	Historic update of international prison standards by OHCHR, Penal Reform International   15 July 2016   Let’s mark Mandela Day by adopting a minimum set of human rights for millions of detainees Nelson Mandela International Day   Speaking ahead of Nelson Mandela International Day, a group of leading human rights experts have called on all States around the world to implement without delay the revised Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners: the Nelson Mandela Rules.   The Rules represent a universally accepted minimum standard for the treatment of prisoners, conditions of detention and prison management, and offer essential practical guidance to prison administrations.   “Speedy and decisive steps towards implementation would truly honour the legacy of the great Statesman and inspirational leader Nelson Mandela who spent 27 years in prison,” said the UN Special Rapporteur on torture, Juan E. Méndez; the Special Rapporteur on prisons, conditions of detention and policing in Africa, Med Kaggwa; the Rapporteur on the rights of persons deprived of liberty of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, James Cavallaro; and the Council of Europe Commissioner for human rights, Nils Muižnieks, in an open statement* issued today.   “Their implementation in prisons around the world would significantly improve the treatment of millions of detainees,” the experts stated. “At the same time, it is useful guidance to help prison staff deliver their important and difficult task in a professional and effective way, benefiting society at large.”   The UN Special Rapporteur on torture added that “the revised Rules are premised on the recognition of prisoners’ inherent dignity and value as human beings, and contain essential new procedural standards and safeguards that will go a long way in protecting detainees from torture and other ill-treatment.”   The Mandela Rules include key safeguards such as the recognition of the absolute prohibition of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. They also make clear that independent healthcare professionals have a duty to refrain from participating in torture or other ill-treatment, as well as a vital role in detecting such ill-treatment and reporting it.   “The prohibition of the use of prolonged solitary confinement, defined as that in excess of 15 days, is a particularly important new provision in the Rules,” Mr. Méndez stressed.   In their open statement, the group of UN and international experts hailed the adoption of Mandela Rules as “a historic step and one of the most significant human rights achievements in recent years.” http://bit.ly/29OV61A   15 Dec. 2015 (Penal Reform International)   Last Thursday the plenary of the UN General Assembly unanimously adopted the revised UN Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners – to be known as the ‘Nelson Mandela Rules’.   ‘Penal Reform International welcomes the successful outcome of this four-year review process. The updating of this key set of widely used standards, is a significant milestone for the advancement of prison conditions and treatment of prisoners worldwide’, stated PRI’s Executive Director, Alison Hannah.   Since their adoption in 1955, the Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners have been regarded by states as the primary – if not only – source of standards relating to treatment in detention, and are the key framework used by monitoring and inspection mechanisms in assessing the treatment of prisoners.   However, unsurprisingly after six decades they had become increasingly out-of-date, superseded by newer human rights and criminal justice standards and developing best practice and understanding in correctional science.   In 2010, a UN General Assembly resolution mandated an Inter-governmental Expert Group to revise the Rules. Member states agreed on the process and revisions, and UN bodies, intergovernmental organisations, civil society and academics participated in the process.   The Expert Group first met in 2011 and decided on a so-called ‘targeted revision’ which would update the most outdated standards.   While many of the original Standard Minimum Rules remain in place, the revised Rules contain substantive and significant new guidance for prison management on eight thematic areas, including healthcare in prisons, investigations of deaths in custody, disciplinary measures, professionalisation of prison staff, and independent inspections.   In particular, the revised Rules introduce for the first time in international standards a limitation on the use of solitary confinement and provide guidance on the use of searches, notably strict regulation of intrusive searches of prisoners.   ‘The revision is in the interest of both prisoners and prison administrations. Modern notions of prison management have been recognised and prison administrations can now go to one reliable and authoritative source for information and guidance on good prison management’, Ms Hannah emphasised.   Given that the last stage of negotiations was hosted by the government of South Africa in Cape Town, it was decided that these revised prison standards would be known as the ‘Nelson Mandela Rules’ in order to honour the legacy of the late South African President, in prison himself for 27 years and a committed advocate for the rights of prisoners.   International justice organisation, Penal Reform International, engaged intensively in the process from its outset in 2010, attending all Expert Group meetings, advocating on the targeted revision, the areas for review and the revised wording of the Rules, as well as organising briefings and expert meetings and coordinating the NGO core group.   This group included the American Civil Liberties Union, Amnesty International, Centro de Estudios Legales y Sociales (Argentina), Conectas Direitos Humanos (Brazil), Centro Regional de Derechos Humanos y Justicia de Género (Chile), the International Commission of Catholic Prison Pastoral Care (Brazil), and the Friends World Committee for Consultation (the Quakers). 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