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On World Children’s Day: SNHR’s 13th Annual Report on Violations Against Children in Syria

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At Least 30,293 Children Have been Killed in Syria Since March 2011, Including 225 Who Died due to Torture, While 5,298 Children Are still Detained and/or Forcibly Disappeared

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The Hague – The Syrian Network for Human Rights:

The Syrian Network for Human Rights (SNHR) today released its 13th annual report on violations against children in Syria, marking this year’s World Children’s Day. In the report, the group reveals that at least 30,293 children have been killed in Syria since March 2011, including 225 who died due to torture, while 5,298 children are still detained and/or forcibly disappeared.

The 40-page report notes that children have been afflicted by the escalating and increasing levels of serious violations by the various parties to the conflict. These violations have worsened the already extremely unsafe environment for children in Syria, who live under the constant threat of violence, undermining their fundamental rights and daily lives. Children have endured various types of violations which have also been perpetrated against adults, ranging from death and severe injury resulting in permanent disfigurement, to arbitrary arrest of hundreds of children, as well as enforced disappearance, with thousands of children classified as ‘missing’ for years away from their families. The report also documents various forms of torture being used, as well as conscription by the various parties to the conflict, with torture being one of the most horrendous types of violations endured by children in Syria. Other violations include denial of education and of essential healthcare services.

Documentation efforts and international recognition

The report mentions the UN-Secretary General’s annual report on children and armed conflict for the year 2023, which documents 1,574 grave violations against children in 2023, and underlines SNHR’s continued commitment to documenting these ongoing violations and supplying the UN with accurate information about war crimes against children in Syria.

Elsewhere, the report reveals that SNHR nominated a Syrian brother and sister, Ahmed and Sana Abdul Karim Zeer, for the 2024 Children’s Peace Prize in recognition of their role in in supporting their fellow conflict-affected children and highlighting their suffering.

Figures on violations against children

The report documents the killing of 30,293 children at the hands of the parties to the conflict and the controlling forces in Syria since March 2011, with 23,058 of these child victims having been killed at the hands of Syrian regime forces, while 2,059 were killed by Russian forces. In addition, a total of 959 children were killed by ISIS, and 76 were killed by Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS). Furthermore, the report adds, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) were responsible for the killing of 274 children, while all armed opposition factions/Syrian National Army (SNA) killed 1,010 children. Lastly, 927 children were killed in attacks by US-led International Coalition, while 1,930 children were killed by other parties.

Extensive figures on arrests and violations against children

With regard to arrest/detention, enforced disappearance, and torture, the report notes that no fewer than 5,298 children are still detained and/or forcibly disappeared by the parties to the conflict and the controlling forces as of November 20, 2024. These are divided as follows: 3,702 children are still detained and/or forcibly disappeared by Syrian regime forces, 319 by ISIS, 47 by HTS, 859 by SDF, and 371 by all armed opposition factions/SNA.

Child deaths due to torture in detention centers

The report records that 225 children have died due to torture in Syria since March 2011 up until November 20, 2024, including 216 children who died in regime detention centers, accounting for about 96 percent of the total, while two died in HTS detention centers, one at the hands of ISIS, three at the hands of SDF, and one at the hands of all armed opposition factions/SNA. Lastly, two children have died due to torture at the hands of other parties.

Attacks on educational and medical facilities

Additionally, the report documents that no fewer than 1,714 of the schools and kindergartens in Syria have been targeted by attacks carried out by the various parties to the conflict and controlling forces in Syria since March 2011 up until November 20, 2024. Of these attacks, 1,270 schools and kindergartens were attacks by regime forces, 222 by Russian forces, 48 by SDF, 38 by all armed opposition factions/SNA, 25 by US-led International Coalition forces, three by HTS, 25 by ISIS, and 83 by other parties.

The report also documents no fewer than 889 attacks on medical facilities in the same time period. A total of 562 attacks were carried out by regime forces, 209 by Russian forces, 19 by ISIS, 16 by all armed opposition factions/SNA, 16 by US-led International Coalition forces, 12 by SDF, two by HTS, one by the Turkistan Islamic Party, and 62 by other parties.

Child conscription

The report further notes that SNHR has documented at least 2,395 incidents of child conscription in Syria since March 2011, up until November 20, 2024, including 1,493 by regime forces, and 701 by the SDF. In addition, HTS was documented as conscripting 103 children, with a further 98 conscripted by all armed opposition factions/SNA.

Violations against children persists in 2024

The report records that grave violations involving violence against children by the parties to the conflict and controlling forces have continued throughout 2024. These violations include killing, serious injuries, maiming, conscription, arbitrary arrest, enforced disappearance, and torture. The recorded incidents highlight the daily suffering of children and the devastating ramifications of the conflict on their lives and future.

More children registered as dead: New documents reveal more violations

Since 2018, the report notes, SNHR has documented that the Syrian regime has been registering the deaths of forcibly disappeared persons, including children, in the civil registry records without revealing any details about the victims’ cause of death or returning their bodies to their families. New documents that surfaced in 2024 have revealed the deaths of at least 50 of the forcibly disappeared children who had been registered as dead in the civil registry records between 2018 and 2024.

Harrowing patterns of sexual violence in detention centers

As the report further reveals, children detained in regime detention centers have experienced several patterns of sexual violence, which is one of the cruelest forms of torture. These patterns include forcible stripping, beating on the genitals, molestation, and rape, in addition to verbal and sexual violence. The report clarifies that documenting these violations or assessing their real frequency is a challenging task in itself, given the victims’ fear of speaking out about their experiences. Still, SNHR has documented 539 cases of sexual violence against children since 2011.

Child conscription: a systematic policy by SDF

The report highlights a systematic child conscription policy enacted by the SDF, which has led to children making up a key part of the SDF’s ranks, under the supervision of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK). The report also reveals that the affiliated People’s Protection Units (YPG), which were founded in 2012, have greatly expanded their conscription of children across all areas under their control.

Violations persist despite international instruments

Despite the abundance of international legal instruments put in place to protect children, the report stresses that violations against children in Syria have not stopped for over 13 years, with all parties to the conflict failing to respect any of these laws. Some of these violations, including extrajudicial killing, enforced disappearance, torture, and child conscription, have amounted to crimes against humanity, while others amount to war crimes when committed in the context of the armed conflict, as well as being grave violations of international human rights law.

Recommendations to limit the suffering of Syrian children

The report calls on all parties to the conflict to:

  • Respect international human rights law and the provisions of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, stop targeting children and areas where children are present
  • Release detained children, end all torture of child detainees, and separate them from adults in detention centers.
  • Follow the Beijing Rules on trying children.
  • End child conscription and discharge children from military forces.
  • End the use of schools and healthcare facilities for military purposes.
  • Provide psychological support for conflict-affected children

A call for the international community

The report calls on the international community and the UN Security Council to take urgent actions, including:

  • Impose sanctions on individuals and entities responsible for violations against children.
  • Promote protection and education programs for children in asylum countries.
  • Provide support and protection for internally displaced and refugee children.
  • Condemn the states supporting the Syrian regime for supporting the regime despite the regime’s multiple contraventions of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.
  • Meet the pledges made to fund relief and protection programs for children.

Conclusion

The report also offers a number of other recommendations to improve the situation of children who are affected by the conflict and to ensure their fundamental rights, placing emphasis on the importance of ensuring international accountability for all the violating parties.

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