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The Hague – Syrian Network for Human Rights:
On January 8, 2025, at 12:15, Israeli occupation forces detained French journalist Sylvain Mercadier, who works for the ‘Sinam Television and Film Production’ company, and lawyer Mohammed Fayyad, who is originally from Quneitra city, in the town of al-Hamidiya in southern Quneitra governorate. According to the information obtained by the Syrian Network for Human Rights (SNHR), the two were detained while covering developments related to the Israeli ground incursion in the town.
SNHR learnt from media worker Yousef Ghribi, one of the members of Sylvian Mercadier’s team, that Mercadier was subjected to physical assault by Israeli forces following a verbal altercation, during which Mercadier’s and Ghribi’s media equipment was destroyed and confiscated. Sylvain Mercadier and Mohammed Fayyad were then taken to the governorate building in Quneitra city before being released later that day in the village of Samdaniya al-Gharbiya. Yousef Ghribi, meanwhile, was only able to escape arrest by hiding in a local resident’s house until the Israeli occupation forces had left the town.
SNHR must stress that the practices of the Israeli occupation in the areas it has infiltrated in Quneitra governorate constitute violations of international law, including the Fourth Geneva Convention, which guarantees protection for journalists and civilians from assault or arbitrary detention. Furthermore, the Israeli ground incursion into Syrian territory represents a clear breach of international law and the principles of sovereignty outlined in the Charter of the United Nations. Such Israeli incursions aim to impose a new status quo that blatantly contravenes the principles of international law.
SNHR calls for urgent international action to stop these violations and ensure respect for Syrian sovereignty. We must also stress that such practices undermine the efforts of the new Syrian leadership to manage the transitional phase in a peaceful and stable manner.
SNHR strongly condemns the Israeli ground incursion and the raids and arrests targeting border villages and towns in Quneitra governorate. These actions are considered serious violations of international law, of the disengagement agreements signed between Syria and Israel in 1974, and of the principles of national sovereignty.
SNHR demands that protection be provided for journalists and media workers. We urge the international community to exert intensified legal and diplomatic pressure on Israel to cease targeting them and to ensure their rights are respected in accordance with international humanitarian law, given their vital role in documenting and disseminating facts and highlighting the violations suffered by civilians.