The Canadian Foreign Ministry calls on the United Nations to hold the Assad regime accountable for violating human rights

Canadian Foreign Minister Mark Garneau said that Canada has requested formal talks under the United Nations Convention against Torture, in order to hold the Assad regime accountable for violating human rights against the Syrian people since the beginning of the Syrian revolution in 2011.

Garneau emphasized, “Over the past decade, the Syrian regime has launched brutal and shocking attacks on its people. We hope that our move today will bring us closer to truth, justice and accountability. The people of Syria deserve no less.

These violations are the basis for a similar request from the Netherlands in September 2020, which was documented by the UN Human Rights Council’s International Independent Investigation Commission on Syria.

“Canada has repeatedly called on the Assad regime to end the gross violations of human rights against its citizens, and despite these calls for justice, the Syrian regime rejected this and ignored the demands to respect human rights,” the Canadian Foreign Ministry stated in a statement.

“The Assad regime must be held accountable for its gross violations of international law,” the statement added.

The statement stated that “Canada’s position is firm that human rights are not negotiable. Syrians have lived a decade of untold suffering at the hands of the Assad regime, and sustainable peace will only be possible after those responsible for these violations are held accountable.”

The statement indicated that Canada “will continue to work with the international community to support justice initiatives and combat impunity for crimes committed in Syria.”