UN Accuses Russia, Turkish Forces of Committing War Crimes Against Civilians in Syria

JERUSALEM, Israel – The United Nations said on Monday that both Russia and Turkish-backed forces committed war crimes against civilians in 2019 and warn that it is happening again amid a bloody offensive currently underway in the northwest province of Idlib.  

The UN’s Commission of Inquiry on Syria, which has been monitoring the devasting civil war since it began nine-years-ago, released a report on Monday condemning Russian aircraft for recklessly targeting civilians in its effort to help Syrian President Bashar al-Assad take complete control of the country. 

The investigators specifically cited an attack on July 22 that killed at least 43 people, and another attack in August that killed at least 20 people.

“The Russian Air Force did not direct the attacks at a specific military objective, amounting to the war crime of launching indiscriminate attacks in civilian areas,” the three-person panel said, citing eyewitness accounts and footage.

 Russia has repeatedly denied accusations that it is indiscriminately attacking civilians.

The commission also accused the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army rebel group of committing the war crimes of murder and pillage during Turkey’s military assault against the Kurds in northeastern Syria last year.

The panel said Turkish military leaders could face criminal responsibility if they are found to have ordered the Syrian rebels to commit the war crimes.

Turkey is still in northeastern Syria and the German NGO, Society for Threatened Peoples, has accused Erdogan’s forces of recently cutting off the water supply to the city of Al Hasaka and surrounding cities, home to more than 200,000 people.

More War Crimes

The United Nations believes war crimes are unfolding in Idlib where a bloody offensive is underway between the forces of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad – backed by Russia and pro-Iranian militias – and rebel jihadist groups backed by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

The bloodshed has sparked a humanitarian disaster. Nearly 1 million Syrian civilians have abandoned their homes to flee the fighting, making this the biggest exodus of people since the war began nearly a decade ago.

The commission believes Assad’s Russian-backed forces have committed the “crime of intentionally terrorizing the population” to force civilians to move and allow Assad to take over.

“We are seeing that picture emerging very clearly, for example, in Idlib,” said UN panel member Hanny Megally, according to the New York Times.

This current round of fighting began in December when the Russian-backed Assad regime launched an offensive to retake Idlib, the last opposition-held outpost in Syria. Several rival Jihadist groups have held Idlib since government forces lost control in 2015 and today, it is largely controlled by an Islamist group that was formerly associated with Al-Qaeda.

Erdogan, knowing that Assad’s advances on Idlib would send a million Syrians rushing to Turkey’s border, launched a counter-attack against the regime and sent thousands of troops to the province. Turkey already houses four million Syrian refugees and its leaders say a million more is unacceptable.

Like previous operations, Turkey is arming jihadist groups in Idlib to fight against Assad’s forces.   

According to a report by the US Department of Defense released in February, the "Turkish-supported opposition likely consists of between 22,000 and 50,000 fighters from more than 30 different groups."

Despite Turkey challenging Assad’s forces by ground and air, it hasn’t been able to stop the Syrian government from retaking the Idlib province.

Erdogan is turning to the international community to help his assault against Assad’s forces, including asking the United States to supply Patriot Missile Batteries to protect Turkish soldiers and their jihadist allies.

The United States’ Involvement

The US is expressing unwavering support for Turkey, who has lost more than 50 troops since the fighting began.

James F. Jeffrey, US Special Representative for Syria Engagement, said on Tuesday that the Turkish military and the jihadist forces allied with them are “fighting to prevent a humanitarian catastrophe. Millions and millions of refugees, that's the intent of Assad and his Russian and Iranian allies.”

“Secondly as NATO allies, we share information, Turkey is a major purchaser of American weapons systems, as the President has said recently, we will provide supplies and other things to Turkey. We are also looking at other requests Turkey has made either to us or to NATO as this conflict goes on,” said Jeffrey.

When asked on Monday if the US would provide Turkey with air support in their offensive, Defense Secretary Mark Esper simply replied, “no,” The Wall Street Journal reports.

Erdogan said he hopes to reach a ceasefire in Syria's northwest when he meets with Russian President Vladimir Putin tomorrow.

"I will go to Moscow on Thursday to discuss the developments in Syria," Erdogan told supporters in Ankara. But Russia places most of the blame on Ankara.

Where Are The Refugees Now?

When Assad began his offensive in Idlib, Turkey vowed to close its doors to the nearly one million people fleeing the fighting. Over the weekend, Turkey threw open its borders with Greece to allow at least 13,000 refugees into the country.  

Greece responded by using tear gas to block the refugees attempting to cross from Turkey.

European Union leaders praised Greece’s deterrence, describing it as a “shield” against countless migrants flooding into Europe.

In 2016 Erdogan made a deal with the European Union to house roughly 4 million refugee migrants, but he occasionally threatens to unleash them on Europe if they do not support his military operations.

The conflict between Turkey and Assad appears to mark a new direction in Syria’s civil war and the United Nations is working to send humanitarian aid to the civilians caught in the middle.

“More than 2,150 trucks carrying aid crossed from Turkey into northwest Syria in January and February,” said Kevin Kenney, Regional Humanitarian Coordinator for the Syrian Crisis. “This is more than double the number of trucks crossing during the same period in 2019. But we need to do even more and scale up our presence on the ground.”

The United States is also pledging aid.

David Eubank, a former US Ranger and founder of the Free Burma Rangers, has spent years providing vital aid to Syrian civilians.

His Christian group is providing food, blankets, and shelter to those displaced by the conflict in Syria.

“The main obstacle is will…if we really care about people we have to put people first, not safety first,” Eubank told Kurdish media.