A new UN report published on Monday unveiled the systematic use of arbitrary detention, torture, and enforced disappearances by the ousted Assad regime, saying it is time to ensure none of them are repeated in the future.
"These acts constitute crimes against humanity and war crimes, representing some of the worst systematic violations of international law committed during the conflict," said the report, which has been prepared after nearly 14 years of investigation by the UN Syria Commission of Inquiry.
"We stand at a critical juncture. The transitional government and future Syrian authorities can now ensure these crimes are never repeated," Paulo Sergio Pinheiro, the chair of the commission, said in a statement. "We hope our findings from almost 14 years of investigations will help end impunity for these patterns of abuse."
The overthrow of the Bashar al-Assad government last month brought the release of countless detainees. However, the report underscored the lingering anguish of tens of thousands of families still searching for missing relatives.
In December and January, two Commission teams visited mass graves and former state detention centers in the Damascus area, including the notorious Sednaya Military Prison, Military Intelligence Branch 235, and the Air Force Intelligence Branches in Mezzeh and Harasta, according to the report, and they found that while much of the evidence and documentation in detention facilities had been burnt or destroyed, significant amounts remained.
"For Syrians who did not find their loved ones among the freed, this evidence, alongside testimonies of freed detainees, may be their best hope to uncover the truth about missing relatives," Commissioner Lynn Welchman said.
The report detailed the conditions inside detention facilities, where prisoners endured severe beatings, electric shocks, rape, and psychological torture. Survivors described malnutrition, disease, and executions, with corpses left in communal cells for days, it added.
Regarding the new Syrian caretaker government's pledge to protect mass graves and crime sites, Welchman said: "We commend the new authorities for their commitment to protecting mass graves and evidence and encourage further efforts, with the support of relevant Syrian civil society and international actors."
Commissioner Hanny Megally, for his part, urged continued support for survivors and families, emphasizing the importance of credible justice mechanisms within Syria in cooperation with international bodies like the International, Impartial, and Independent Mechanism (IIIM).
The report is based on over 2,000 witness testimonies, including 550 survivors of torture, and provides the most comprehensive analysis to date of detention-related atrocities committed by the ousted regime.
