The attack on the medical and the Civil Defense cadres continues despite the cessation of hostilities agreement
SNHR published its monthly report documenting violations against medical cadres and the cadres of civil defense in April by the parties of conflict in Syria.
The report confirms the consistent bombing and targeting of medical facilities, medical and civil defense facilities and teams since 2011 by the different conflict parties indicates a systematic policy that only aims to kill more victims and deepens the suffering of the injured civilians and rebels.
The report indicates that Since the start of the cessation of hostilities agreement, various Syrian governorates witnessed a remarkable and well relative decline, compared with the previous months since March 2011, especially in the areas under the control of the armed opposition factions, but in spite of that, the violations did not stop, particularly by the Syrian regime and its allies targeting the vital centers and medical cadres.
The report said that after one day of the declaration of the Supreme Commission for negotiations to postpone its participation in the Geneva talks on 19April, the governmental and Russian forces resumed bombardment of areas beyond the control of the Syrian regime to return the pace of killings to what it was before the cessation of hostilities agreement.
The report documents the killing of 16 medical cadres and civil defense in April 2016, distributed to 8 by the governmental forces, 6 by the forces allegedly Russian, and 2 by armed opposition factions.
The report details the victims of medical cadres and the civil defense cadres by the governmental forces, where a doctor was killed and 5 from the civil defense cadres, a volunteer in the Syrian Red Crescent, and one of the medical cadres. While Russian troops killed two doctors, two female nurses and 2 of medical cadres. While the opposition armed factions killed 2 of the medical cadres.
The report adopted high methodology in documentation, through direct stories of survivors or the families of the victims, in addition to the operations of checking and analysis of photos, videos, and some medical records. It is also confirmed that all this documentation is not covering all cases; in the light of the ban and prosecution by the governmental forces and some other armed groups.
The report pointed out that the Syrian government violated both the International Humanitarian Law and Customary Humanitarian Law, particularly article 3 which is common to the Geneva Conventions and international humanitarian law. The Syrian government committed crimes considered to be war crimes targeting medical cadres and working installations, and committed crimes amounted to be against humanity.
The report demanded the International Security Council to take its legal and moral responsibilities toward what is happening in Syria at least for the right of the medical cadres and not stand silent amid the daily bloodshed.
Finally, the report recommended the global organizations to send volunteers to work in non-dangerous areas where patients are transferred, especially after the documented cases of death of many patients because of the deficit in the medical cadres.