The Iran-Israel War and Its Impact on Syria: Assessing Violations of Sovereignty, Civilian Harm, and State Responsibility under International Law

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Damascus – On August 15, 2025, the Syrian Network for Human Rights (SNHR) released a report titled “The Iran-Israel War and Its Impact on Syria: Assessing Violations of Sovereignty, Civilian Harm, and State Responsibility Under International Law.” The report examines the multifaceted violations of Syrian sovereignty by both Israel and Iran, forcibly transforming the country into an arena for an escalating regional conflict without the consent or willingness of the Syrian state. The report highlights the systematic exploitation of Syrian airspace and territory, amid the country’s fragile post-Assad transitional period and its lack of adequate defensive capabilities to protect its national sovereignty. The report also documents the extensive damage caused to Syria as a result of the conflict and analyzes the legal responsibilities of all parties, including the Syrian government’s obligations towards its population, despite the severe constraints on its ability to implement these obligations.

Violation of International Law

The report indicated that Israel has extensively used Syrian airspace without official authorization to intercept Iranian missiles and aircraft, refuel Iranian aircraft, and launch direct attacks in the Daraa and Quneitra governorates. In contrast, Iranian forces have used Syrian airspace to launch missiles and drones toward Israel since the outbreak of war between the two sides in June 2025.

The report emphasized that transforming Syrian territory into an involuntary battlefield constitutes a clear violation of several fundamental principles of international law. This constitutes a violation of the principle of full sovereignty over Syrian airspace, as stipulated in Article 1 of the Chicago Convention, in addition to a violation of the principle of territorial sovereignty, which prohibits any state from carrying out military operations on the territory of another state without its express consent.

The report also indicated that these violations constitute a breach of the law of neutrality enshrined in the Hague Conventions. Syria’s declaration of its commitment to neutrality regarding the Iranian-Israeli conflict is supposed to legally protect it from becoming an arena for military operations. However, the reality reveals a real inability to enforce this declared neutrality, as a result of the systematic destruction of its defensive capabilities.

The report indicated that these attacks place Syria in a delicate legal paradox. The principle of state responsibility, as formulated by the International Law Commission, stipulates that no state may knowingly permit the use of its territory for activities that violate the rights of other states. Syria is thus held responsible for preventing the use of its territory to launch attacks, even though it lacks the effective means to do so.

Assessing the Impact on Syrian Civilians and Infrastructure

The report highlighted the extensive damage to the Syrian state as a result of the conflict, most notably:

1. Civilian Damage and Humanitarian Consequences:
   1. Human Losses: The Syrian Network for Human Rights has documented a number of direct civilian casualties since the escalation of the conflict in June 2025, including the death of a Syrian woman when an Iranian drone fell on her home in the Tartous countryside. Recent Israeli incursions into the Quneitra, Daraa, and Damascus countryside governorates also resulted in the deaths of ten civilians, the injury of others, and the arbitrary detention of more than 13 civilians during deep incursions carried out by Israeli forces into these areas.
   2. Forced displacement: The displacement crisis is one of the most significant manifestations of civilian harm. Military operations in the town of Koya, southwest of Daraa, temporarily displaced dozens of families in late March 2025. While the figures presented are significant, they do not reflect the full extent of forced displacement, as they only document confirmed incidents, not the cumulative displacement resulting from ongoing insecurity.
2. Psychological and societal impact
   1. Collective psychological trauma: Civilians live in a constant state of anxiety due to repeated bombing, leading to a condition known as “psychological siege,” a form of chronic psychological stress.
   2. Intergenerational transmission of trauma: Children are exposed to direct and indirect psychological trauma, which constitutes a clear violation of their rights under the Convention on the Rights of the Child.

Economic devastation and declining development

1. Impact on Vital Sectors
   1. Agricultural Sector: Agricultural lands and forests in the south of the country were damaged as a result of Israeli strikes, resulting in severe crop losses and long-term negative repercussions for future agricultural production.
   2. Infrastructure and Trade: Repeated closures of airspace and border crossings have contributed to increased transportation and insurance costs, hampering imports and exports, and negatively impacting supply chains and commercial activities.
2. Indirect Economic Losses
   1. Freezing of Reconstruction Projects: The deteriorating security situation has led to the suspension of many projects planned for the post-regime period, highlighting the profound impact of the conflict on development efforts.
   2. Obstructing Investments: Continuing security tensions have made Syria’s investment environment risky, prompting foreign investors to retreat and freezing local capital.
   3. Halting Local Economic Activity: Syrian companies are no longer able to plan or execute due to the lack of security, leading to a near-total paralysis of the local economy.
   4. Exacerbating Energy Crisis and Resource Depletion: The country faces a severe energy shortage due to the deterioration of electricity generation capacity and damage to transmission networks, resulting in chronic and random power outages.
3. Airspace closure and its effects
   1. Syrian airspace has been repeatedly closed due to the deteriorating security situation, prompting a number of major international airlines to suspend flights to or through Syria.
   2. The disruption of civil aviation has not only disrupted passenger traffic but also impacted the air cargo of vital goods, such as medicines and medical equipment, exacerbating the fragility of vital supply chains.

The Syrian Government’s Obligations under International Law

The report discusses the Syrian government’s obligations toward the civilian population, most notably the duty to protect, despite the constraints the state faces due to external interventions. This obligation stems from the principle of sovereignty and Syria’s international commitments, particularly the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

However, the state’s actual capacity to fulfill this duty has become virtually nonexistent, given the deliberate destruction of air defense systems, rendering Syria unable to perform many of its essential functions of protecting the population. Nevertheless, the report proposed a set of possible measures, within the state’s current capacity, including:

• Accurately document violations.
• Provide humanitarian assistance to affected populations.
• Establish effective early warning systems.
• Facilitate the delivery of international aid.
• Activate available legal and diplomatic tools.

1. Diplomatic Protest and its Implementation

The report emphasized the importance of the Syrian state registering official diplomatic protests against violations of sovereignty, as this is a legal right that preserves the possibility of later claims for compensation and prevents silence from being interpreted as tacit acceptance. This protest is also a basic procedural requirement before resorting to international courts, including the International Court of Justice.

2. Balancing the assertion of sovereignty with pragmatic considerations

The report reviewed the complex challenges facing Syria in asserting its sovereignty without being drawn into unpredictable escalation, and recommended a pragmatic legal approach based on:

• Relying on international legal tools rather than military force.
• Maintaining a regular pace of protests to avoid implicitly legitimizing violations.
• A clear distinction is made between accepting humanitarian aid and refusing to violate sovereignty.

3. Claiming Compensation for Violations of Sovereignty

The report emphasized Syria’s right, under international law, to seek full reparation for any unlawful acts that violate its sovereignty. This right includes various forms of compensation, including:

• Restitution of rights: such as the cessation of military operations, the withdrawal of foreign forces, and the restoration of defense capabilities.
• Financial compensation: for damage to infrastructure, losses in trade and investment, and declining economic growth.
• Moral compensation: related to the violation of the dignity of the state and the psychological and social impact the aggression had on Syrian society.
• Guarantees of non-repetition: through clear legal obligations and international oversight mechanisms to prevent the recurrence of violations in the future.

Recommendations: 

First: Recommendations to the Syrian Government

1. Immediate Diplomatic and Legal Action

Activating Security Council processes: The report recommended that the Syrian government submit a formal complaint to the Security Council, based on Articles 35 and 51 of the UN Charter. It also called for updating this complaint periodically to ensure the continued presence of the issue on the Council’s agenda and to provide an official legal record to support future actions. The Syrian Network for Human Rights expressed its readiness to provide technical support in this context.

Recourse to the International Court of Justice: The report emphasized the importance of urging the UN General Assembly to request an advisory opinion on violations of sovereignty. It also recommended activating Article 84 of the Chicago Convention regarding systematic violations of civil airspace, with prior preparations in terms of gathering technical evidence and legal analysis.

Activating specialized agencies: The report called for action through relevant international frameworks, by:

• Calling on the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) Council to hold an emergency session on threats to aviation safety.
• Demanding an Arab monitoring mission to monitor violations.
• Requesting a special session of the Human Rights Council on the humanitarian impact of the conflict.
• Cooperating with the World Health Organization to conduct a comprehensive assessment of the health consequences of the conflict.

2. Civil Protection Measures

Establishing a National Early Warning System: The report recommended launching an integrated national early warning system, including:

• Instant mobile alerts.
• Community networks to monitor movements in border areas.
• Integration with weather and aviation radars.
• Public awareness campaigns to enhance community response in emergencies.

Developing mechanisms for documenting and compensating civilian victims:

• Establishing a comprehensive record of civilian victims and violations committed against them.
• Assessing and documenting damage to private and public property.
• Activating temporary compensation programs to support those affected.
• Preparing legal files that qualify for filing claims before international bodies in the future.

Protocols for the Protection of Vital Facilities:

• Enhancing the protection of essential infrastructure, such as hospitals, water, and energy networks.
• Using international protective markings on civilian facilities, in accordance with the Geneva Conventions.

3. Strategic Technical Partnerships

The report recommended expanding technical partnerships as follows:

• Obtaining early warning technologies and training expertise from friendly countries.
• Leveraging international support to enhance civilian protection.
• Building national legal capacities capable of handling international legal disputes.
• Documenting violations using an internationally recognized legal methodology.

Second: Recommendations to the international community

1. Support the principle of sovereignty and prevent impunity

UN General Assembly Action: The report recommended that the General Assembly:

• Adopting a resolution condemning violations and calling for their immediate cessation.
• Appointing a Special Rapporteur on violations of sovereignty in armed conflicts.
• Requesting an advisory opinion from the International Court of Justice on international responsibility in cases where states fail to protect their sovereignty.
• Establishing a voluntary fund to support states affected by systematic violations of sovereignty.

Economic and Development Assistance: The report recommended that the international community:

• Establish dedicated financial funds to support reconstruction efforts.
• Provide trade facilitation and direct support to local markets.
• Provide technical assistance to enhance the Syrian government’s capacity to plan economic recovery programs.

Imposing economic consequences on violators

• Implementing financial and moral sanctions targeting military industries and entities involved in serious violations.
• Launching campaigns to divest from companies and institutions that facilitate or finance violations.

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