ID with the Commission of Inquiry on Syria, Intervention by Greece

UNITED NATIONS HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL
28th Session

ID with the Commission of Inquiry on Syria
17 March 2015

Intervention by Greece

Thank you Mr President.

Greece aligns itself with the statement delivered by the European Union.

We would like to thank the Commission of Inquiry for its most recent report and for its ongoing work to document the widespread human rights violations and abuses in the Syrian Arab Republic committed by all parties to the conflict, including Syrian authorities and extremist groups. We also welcome its separate report issued last November, which has documented that Daesh/ISIL has set up a reign of terror in Syria, committing heinous crimes.

We value all the above efforts of the Commission despite the fact that it has been denied access to Syria. We call on the Syrian authorities to grant to the Commission, as a matter of urgency, unhindered access to the country.

Humanitarian access is still highly problematic. We believe that this issue should also be dealt effectively and as a matter of priority in an effort to reduce the death toll, treat the injured and combat starvation.

We fully support the EU call on the Security Council to urgently address the prevailing culture of impunity and refer the situation in Syria to the International Criminal Court. All responsible must be held accountable and duly punished.

We join our EU and other colleagues in expressing deep concern at the spread of extremism and the absence of protection of the rights of the civilian population, in particular for all ethnic, religious and other vulnerable groups, including the Christian communities. In this connection, we strongly condemn the recent destruction of places for worship, historical monuments and archeological sites,  perpetrated by ISIS.

In general, we reiterate our concern about the rise of ISIS and its barbaric and inhumane practices which pose a serious threat to the stability of the wider region and beyond. A viable political solution to the Syrian conflict is now more needed than ever. We hope that this can be achieved soon.      

Thank you Mr President.