The United Nations Office at Geneva
Multimedia Newsroom
“The documented violations and abuses have been perpetrated by the Government, de facto authorities and other armed groups across the country, the report states. They include arbitrary detention, torture and ill-treatment, sexual and gender-based violence, enforced disappearance and abduction,” Throssell said.
The report paints an alarming picture of the suffering of returnees, in particular women, amid the increasing number of deportations of Syrians from other countries. The situation of these returnees raises serious questions about the commitment of States to due process and non-refoulement.
“The report says that women returnees face specifically discriminatory restrictions on their liberty to move freely and independently. It also documents a number of cases of women being forced by male family members to return to Syria to assess the conditions for safe and sustainable return for the rest of the family,” she said.
“Economic hardship, abuse, increasingly hostile speech and rhetoric against refugees, raids and mass arrests in some host countries have compelled many to return to Syria, the report says,” spokesperson said.
Türkiye announced in May 2022 what it called the “resettlement” of one million Syrian refugees back to Syria, with reports of increased restrictions and forced deportations. In Lebanon, following months of increasing tensions and animosity towards Syrian refugees, Lebanese security forces conducted more than 70 raids targeting Syrian refugee communities in camps and residential areas across the country in the spring of 2023. At least 1,455 Syrians were arrested and 712 of them deported.
“There are reasonable grounds to believe that the overall conditions in Syria do not permit safe, dignified and sustainable returns of Syrian refuges to their home country, the report says. It also notes that most of the interviewees said they had decided to flee again, even though, once back abroad, it was likely they would face precarious economic conditions and harassment,” Throssell stated.
ENDS
For more information and media requests, please contact:
In Geneva
Liz Throssell - + 41 22 917 9296 / elizabeth.throssell@un.org or
Ravina Shamdasani - + 41 22 917 9169 / ravina.shamdasani@un.org or
Jeremy Laurence - +41 22 917 9383 / jeremy.laurence@un.org
Tag and share
Twitter @UNHumanRights
Facebook unitednationshumanrights
Instagram @unitednationshumanrights
STORY: UN Human Rights Spokesperson Liz Throssell on Syrian returnees subjected to “gross human rights violations and abuses”
TRT: 01:37
SOURCE: UNTV / OHCHR
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: English/NATS
ASPECT RATIO: 16:9
DATELINE: 13 February 2024 GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
1. Exterior shot: Palais des Nations, Geneva
2. Cut Away: Briefing room
3. SOUNDBITE (English)—Liz Throssell, Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR): “The documented violations and abuses have been perpetrated by the Government, de facto authorities and other armed groups across the country, the report states. They include arbitrary detention, torture and ill-treatment, sexual and gender-based violence, enforced disappearance and abduction.”
4. Cut Away: Briefing room
5. SOUNDBITE (English)—Liz Throssell, Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR): “The report says that women returnees face specifically discriminatory restrictions on their liberty to move freely and independently. It also documents a number of cases of women being forced by male family members to return to Syria to assess the conditions for safe and sustainable return for the rest of the family.”
6. Cut Away: Briefing room
7. SOUNDBITE (English)—Liz Throssell, Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR): “Economic hardship, abuse, increasingly hostile speech and rhetoric against refugees, raids and mass arrests in some host countries have compelled many to return to Syria, the report says.”
8. Cut Away: Briefing room
9. SOUNDBITE (English)—Liz Throssell, Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR): “There are reasonable grounds to believe that the overall conditions in Syria do not permit safe, dignified and sustainable returns of Syrian refuges to their home country, the report says. It also notes that most of the interviewees said they had decided to flee again, even though, once back abroad, it was likely they would face precarious economic conditions and harassment.”
10. Cut Away: Briefing room
Similar Stories
1
1
1
Edited News | WFP
Gaza: One million receive food parcels as humanitarians race to ‘push back hunger’
Food is slowly returning to the shelves in Gaza amid “apocalyptic scenes” but supplies are still desperately inadequate, UN humanitarians said on Tuesday, as they issued fresh calls for wider access and continued financial support.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN Human Rights Office spokesperson Seif Magango today told the bi-weekly UN press briefing in Geneva of more details that are emerging on the atrocities committed in El Fasher, in Sudan during and after its takeover by the Rapid Support Forces.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN Human Rights Office spokesperson Seif Magango made the following comment on Friday at the bi-weekly press briefing in Geneva.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN Human Rights Office spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani made the following comment on Friday at the bi-weekly press briefing in Geneva.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , WHO
Sudan: UN Raises Alarm Over Mass Atrocities in El Fasher as Survivors Report Executions, Killings and Rapes
More details continue to emerge about atrocities committed during and after the fall of El Fasher to the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in Sudan on 23 October. Since the powerful paramilitary group made a major incursion into the city last week, the UN Human Rights Office has received “horrendous accounts of summary executions, mass killings, rapes, attacks against humanitarian workers, looting, abductions and forced displacement,” said Seif Magango, spokesperson for the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).
1
1
1
Edited News | OCHA
Ukraine: Russian attacks on energy terrorize population as winter starts; could trigger major ‘crisis within crisis’
The UN’s top aid official in Ukraine expressed concern on Friday about “continuous attacks” on energy production sites and distribution facilities.
1
1
1
Edited News | HRC
Navi Pillay Retires After Decades Defending Human Rights and Pursuing Justice
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
The telecommunications shutdowns in Afghanistan in September had serious and far-reaching impacts on people’s lives, according to a briefing paper published today by the UN Human Rights Office and the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA).
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN Human Rights Office spokesperson Jeremy Laurence at the UN Geneva press briefing made the following comment on the ASEAN declaration on the right to a healthy environment.
1
1
1
Edited News | IFRC , OCHA , WMO
‘Catastrophic’ Hurricane Melissa hours from landfall in Jamaica as humanitarians rush to save lives
Millions in Jamaica and across the Caribbean are bracing for massive impact from Hurricane Melissa on Tuesday as the UN and partners are warning of a “severe” and “immediate” humanitarian threat.
1
1
Edited News | WHO
‘We need all routes to open’: in Gaza WHO calls for ramp-up of medevacs, easier access for essentials
Two weeks since a ceasefire agreement entered into force in Gaza the World Health Organization (WHO) noted progress on the flow of aid while calling for more evacuations of critical patients and eased entry for essential medicines and supplies.
1
12
1
1
Edited News | WMO , UNITED NATIONS
UN chief urges boost to life-saving weather warning systems, stresses role of climate change science
No country is safe from the devastating impacts of extreme weather — and saving lives means making early-warning systems accessible to all, UN chief António Guterres said on Wednesday.