USA, France, UK, Germany, Canada, and the Netherlands stress that accountability is the only way to build sustainable peace in Syria
Languages
Available In
Paris – Syrian Network for Human Rights:
On Friday, September 23, 2022: The Syrian Network for Human Rights, in cooperation with the US State Department’s Office of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor (DRL), co-hosted an event on the sidelines of the 77th session of the United Nations General Assembly. The event, entitled ‘Closing the Gap: The Pursuit for Accountability in Syria,’ was sponsored by: the USA, France, UK, Germany, Canada and the Netherlands, with participation by Ethan Goldrich, Deputy Assistant Secretary of the US State Deparrtment’s Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs; Marcel de Vink, the Netherlands’ Vice Minister for Foreign Affairs; Brigitte Curmi, France’s Special Envoy for Syria; Stefan Schneck, Germany’s Special Envoy for Syria; Jonathan Hargreaves, the UK’s Special Envoy for Syria; Jess Dutton, Director General of Canada’s Global Affairs Middle East Bureau, and Linnea Arvidsson of the Commission of Inquiry in Syria (COI).
Other participants were Kenneth Roth, former Executive Director of Human Rights Watch, Hala Hazza, Director of Women Survivors, Mohammad Al-Abdullah, Executive Director of Syria Justice and Accountability Center, Raed Al Saleh, Head of the Syrian Civil Defense (White Helmets), and Fadel Abdul Ghany, Executive Director of the Syrian Network for Human Rights (SNHR), with the event moderated by Emma Beals, Senior Advisor at the European Institute of Peace. The event was broadcast live on zoom and SNHR’s social media platforms.
Mr. Fadel Abdel Ghany opened the event by thanking the US State Department’s DRL Bureau for co-organizing the event over the past weeks. He thanked the six sponsoring countries, noting that this coordination and cooperation dates back to 2015, and that this event has become one of the largest international events about Syria, adding that It is particularly special because it is open to the public, with many Syrians wishing to hear directly from national representatives, and to be reassured that these nations’ political and legal positions have not changed with regards to the Syrian regime, which has perpetrated crimes against humanity and war crimes against them, and that ending the conflict, holding perpetrators accountable, and achieving political transition in Syria towards democracy, and human rights are still among the priorities of these countries.