The UN human rights office (OHCHR) on Friday urged interim Syrian authorities to increase efforts to address ongoing human rights concerns, citing “distressing accounts” of violations targeting minority groups and individuals allegedly affiliated with the former Bashar al-Assad government. This statement came ahead of the first anniversary of the fall of the Assad regime.
OHCHR spokesperson Thameen Al-Kheethan said:
While the interim authorities have taken encouraging steps towards addressing past violations, these steps are only the beginning of what needs to be done.The interim authorities have established national commissions for transitional justice and missing persons, as well as investigation bodies into violence in the coastal areas and in Suweida, and announced a draft law on transitional justice. Trials have started against alleged perpetrators of the coastal violence.
Thameen highlighted the persisting rights violations since the fall of the Assad regime, such as arbitrary killings and abductions of individuals accused of affiliation with the Assad government. Violence has also affected certain minority communities, such as Alawites, Druze, Christians and Bedouins, with increasing hate speech, both online and offline, fueling ethnic hatred.
Thameen claimed that interim-authority forces, their affiliates, Assad-regime affiliates, local militias, and unidentified armed actors, have all carried out killings. Other reported violations include sexual violence, arbitrary detention, destruction of homes, forced evictions, and confiscation of property.
The Israeli military operations have reportedly worsened the situation, with 350 airstrikes conducted on Syria in 2024. The strikes, which aimed at dismantling critical infrastructure and destroying weapons production sites, killed at least 36 civilians. In July, Israel launched airstrikes on Syrian military targets in Damascus and Sweida, ostensibly to protect the Druze community following violent clashes between Druze militias and Bedouin tribes.
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk further called on the authorities to address the root causes of these violations, emphasizing accountability, peace and security as “absolute prerequisites for a successful transition.” He also urged the authorities to uphold victims’ rights to effective remedies.
Since the fall of the Assad regime in 2024, the interim government led by President Ahmed al-Sharaa has faced numerous accusations of human rights violations. These include the OHCHR’s report in November documenting the enforced disappearances of 97 people under the al-Sharaa administration. In October, a UN commission expressed concern over “repeated massacres and human rights violations” allegedly committed by al-Sharaa’s security forces.
These reports contradict al-Sharaa’s public statements on delivering a democratic political transition and his promise to safeguard minority communities, enhancing religious tolerance.
The rising hate speech against minority groups raises questions about the line between free expression and hate speech. Article 20 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights specifically prohibits advocacy of racial or religious hatred that incites discrimination or violence. The UN Rabat Plan of Action additionally provides guidance on the difference between protected expression and “incitement.”
Meanwhile, an expert with the Foreign Policy Research Institute says that Syria’s long-term stability depends on “a new national identity rooted in equality and belonging rather than ethnic or religious supremacy.”
