GENEVA (Sputnik) — The UN-mandated Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic strongly condemned on Wednesday recent attacks on civilians and medical facilities in Syria, notably in the northern Aleppo province, considering them to be violations of international humanitarian law and war crimes.
"The Commission calls on all parties to cease the unlawful attacks on civilian areas, especially humanitarian locations and specially protected sites under international humanitarian law. The Commission has repeatedly noted that international humanitarian law’s foundational principle of distinction – which underlies a number of war crimes – requires all parties to a conflict to distinguish between lawful and unlawful targets. The recent unlawful attacks are violations of international humanitarian law; some are war crimes," the organization set up by the UN Human Rights Council said in a statement.
"Failure to respect the laws of war must have consequences for the perpetrators. Accountability must be part of the process of returning Syria to peace. Until the culture of impunity is uprooted, civilians will continue to be targeted, victimized and brutally killed," Paulo Pinheiro, the Commission's chair, stressed, as quoted in the statement.
A US-Russia-brokered ceasefire came into force across Syria on February 27. IS and Nusra Front, both outlawed in Russia, were not part of the deal. Despite the ceasefire agreement, violence has escalated in Syria in recent weeks, especially in the northern Aleppo region.
