The U.N. Human Rights Chief chastised the Syrian government Monday for its role in starting the conflict in its country and criticized the Security Council for not being more decisive in ending the suffering.
“It all began seven years ago almost to the day with the torture of children, and the impunity given by the Syrian state to those torturers,” High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra'ad al Hussein said. He was referring to a group of school boys from Daraa who in 2011 painted anti-government graffiti that led to arrests, a crackdown on peaceful protests, and eventually full-fledged conflict.
The government of President Bashar al-Assad has said it is only conducting counter-terrorism operations, not attacking its own civilians.
The high commissioner noted that unlawful methods of warfare have been used by all parties to this conflict, not just the government.
He scolded the U.N. Security Council for not taking “decisive action” to defend human rights and prevent further loss of life, including using and threatening the use of the veto to protect parties to the conflict.
He again called for atrocities committed in Syria to be referred to the International Criminal Court at The Hague. An unlikely action, as it would require a Security Council referral and Russia has used its veto 11 times since the start of the conflict to spare the Assad government from sanctions or other measures.
联合国负责人权事务的官员星期一批评叙利亚政府参与了触发内战，同时批评安理会没有为制止民众的苦难采取更坚决的行动。
联合国难民事务高级专员伊德·拉阿德·侯赛因（Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein）说，7年前，儿童受到折磨，然而叙利亚政府让肇事者逍遥法外。2011年，一些学生用油漆喷写反政府标语后被逮捕，随后发生的抗议学生被捕的示威受到政府镇压，最后引发叙利亚全面内战。
阿萨德政府说，军队只是在进行反恐行动，不攻击本国民众。联合国难民事务高级专员侯赛因说，在叙利亚内战中，不仅是叙利亚政府，交战各方都使用了非法手段。
侯赛因批评联合国安理会没有为捍卫人权和阻止更多人丧生而采取果断行动，还批评有人为袒护冲突中的某交战方使用或威胁使用否决权。
他再次呼吁把在叙利亚发生的杀戮交给海牙的国际刑事法庭调查。不过这几乎不可能实现，因为这需要安理会先同意，而俄罗斯自从叙利亚内战开始以来已经为了不让阿萨德政府受到制裁或其它处罚动用了11次否决权。