Mr.

President, Distinguished Members of the General Assembly, Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen, I thank you for the invitation to address you on the human rights situation in S yria under the agenda item Human Rights Council. The worsening human rights situat ion in Syria has prompted the Human Rights Council to hold three special session s, to dispatch one fact-finding mission and one independent Commission of Inquir y. The President of the Human Rights Council shared the report of the Commission of Inquiry with this Assembly on 29 November last year. Ladies and Gentlemen, Allow me to now update you on the current human rights situation in Syri a. The violent Government crackdown on peaceful protests demanding freedom, dignity and social justice in Syria has continued unabated for eleven months now. While no exact figures can be provided due to our lack of access to the country, cred ible reports indicate that Syrian security forces killed well above 5,400 people last year, including civilians as well as military personnel who refused to sho ot civilians. Due to extreme difficulties in substantiating the events on the gr ound, it has become almost impossible for my Office to update the death toll in the past two months. However, we are certain that the number of dead and injured continues to rise every day. Tens of thousands, including children, have been a rrested, with more than 18,000 reportedly still arbitrarily held in detention. T housands more are reported missing. 25,000 people are estimated to have sought r efuge in neighbouring and other countries. And more than 70,000 are estimated to have been internally displaced. While the protests have remained largely peaceful, reports of armed attacks by a nti-government fighters against Syrian forces have increased, also with conseque nces on civilians. According to the Government, some 2000 military and security personnel have been killed. I am particularly appalled by the ongoing onslaught on Homs. Since 3 February, i n further escalation of its assault, the Government has used tanks, mortars, roc kets and artillery to pummel the city of Homs. According to credible accounts, t he Syrian army has shelled densely populated neighborhoods of Homs in what appea rs to be an indiscriminate attack on civilian areas. More than 300 people have r eportedly been killed in the city since the start of this assault ten days ago. The majority of them were victims of the shelling. Reports indicate that hospitals, which were already struggling to cope with all those injured in recent weeks, are now overwhelmed. People have set up makeshift clinics throughout the beleaguered city. Medical supplies have been depleted. S hells have struck at least three makeshift clinics resulting in casualties. Due to heavy shelling, residents have been effectively trapped in areas under at tack. Electricity and communication have been cut off in some neighborhoods. And food remains scarce. The humanitarian situation in Homs is simply deplorable. Similar accounts of int ensifying assault and worsening of humanitarian situation have been received fro m Zabadani, Dara, and al-Rastan. The risk of a humanitarian crisis throughout Syr ia is rising. The failure of the Security Council to agree on firm collective action appears t o have emboldened the Syrian Government to launch an all-out assault in an effor

t to crush dissent with overwhelming force. Yet, as the Secretary-General has sa id, the lack of agreement in the Security Council gives no license to the Syrian authorities to step up the attacks on the Syrian population. No government can c ommit such acts against its people without its legitimacy being eroded. The appall ing brutality we are witnessing in Homsis a grim harbinger of worse to come. Excellencies, The nature and scale of abuses committed by Syrian forces indicate that crimes a gainst humanity are likely to have been committed since March 2011. Independent, credible and corroborated accounts indicate that these abuses have taken place as part of a widespread and systematic attack on civilians. Furthermore, the bre adth and patterns of attacks by military and security forces on civilians and th e widespread destruction of homes, hospitals, schools and other civilian infrast ructure indicate approval or complicity of the authorities at the highest levels . Since anti-government protests started, security forces and Government-supported Shabbiha militias have been responsible for killing thousands of people through attacks on peaceful protests and in large-scale military operations in several cities. They have used a shoot-to-kill policy to crush peaceful protests. Several defectors from military and security forces have said that they received orders from their commanders to shoot unarmed protesters without warning. Snipers on ro oftops are reported to have targeted protestors, ambulances, and bystanders who were trying to rescue the wounded and collect the bodies of those killed. Civilians have borne the brunt of the violence, as cities such as Homs, Hama, De raa and Idlib have been blockaded and curfews imposed. During the blockades, resi dents have not been able to obtain water, food and medical supplies. Military an d security forces have targeted residential water tanks and water pipes. The blo ckades had often made it impossible to get the injured to hospitals. Hospitals have been used as detention and torture facilities. Ambulances have co me under fire, and many of the injured and sick have been turned away from publi c hospitals in several cities. Wounded detainees have been subjected to torture and other forms of ill-treatment in military hospitals. Evidence gathered indica tes that doctors and medical workers have been pursued, arrested, and tortured b y the security forces. Increasingly, most of the wounded avoid going to public h ospitals for fear of being arrested or tortured. The injured are largely treated in underground hospitals established in apartments, on farms, and at private ho mes. Hygiene and sterilization conditions are rudimentary and the mere possessio n of medical supplies is being punished. Ladies and Gentlemen, Reliable information indicates that Syrian military and security forces have lau nched massive campaigns of arrest, arbitrarily detaining thousands of protestors , activists and other suspected of anti-Government sentiments or activities. Som e have been involuntarily and forcibly disappeared. Credible information show patterns of systematic and widespread use of torture i n interrogation and detention facilities by Security forces. According to inform ation provided by army defectors, they received orders from their commanding off icers to torture. Extensive reports of sexual violence, in particular rape, in places of detention , primarily against men and boys, are particularly disturbing. Children have not been spared. Children have been killed by beating, sniper fire and shelling from Government security forces in several places throughout Syria . As of the end of January, security forces have killed more than 400 children. Children, as young as 10, have been subjected to arbitrary arrest and detention. Children have been kept in solitary confinement. They have also been kept in ov ercrowded cells with adults, often deprived of food and water. Schools have been used as detention facilities, sniper post and military bases.

Distinguished Members of the General Assembly, I am outraged by these serious violations. I am very distressed that the continu ed ruthless repression and deliberate stirring of sectarian tensions might soon plunge Syria into civil war. The longer the international community fails to tak e action, the more the civilian population will suffer from countless atrocities committed against them. This Assembly, in its resolution of 19 December 2011, condemned human rights vio lations and use of force against civilians by Syrian authorities. It called on S yria to comply with its obligations under human rights law. However, the gross, widespread and systematic human rights violations have not only continued but al so sharply escalated. Excellencies, The Government of Syria has manifestly failed to fulfil its obligation to protec t its population. Each and every member of the international community must act now to urgently protect the Syrian population. The League of Arab States has responded resolutely to the events in Syria and it s efforts should be supported. Unfortunately Syria failed to fully comply with t he Leagues Observer Mission and persisted in its violent crackdown. The League sh ould continue its effort to compel Syria to end the violence. My Office remains ready to provide appropriate assistance to the League of Arab States if the Leag ue so requests. International and independent monitoring bodies, including my Office and the ind ependent Commission of Inquiry must also be allowed into Syria. And humanitarian actors must be guaranteed immediate, unhindered access. Ladies and gentlemen, The Fact-Finding Mission, the Commission of Inquiry on Syria, and I myself have all concluded that crimes against humanity are likely to have been committed in Syria. I have encouraged the Security Council to refer the situation to the Inte rnational Criminal Court. All Member States must ensure that these crimes do not go unpunished. Yet, these crimes continue to be committed as I speak. The Universal Declaration for Human Rights, adopted by this Assembly more than 6 0 years ago, makes clear that it is essential, if man is not to be compelled to have recourse, as a last resort, to rebellion against tyranny and oppression, th at human rights should be protected by the rule of law. The people of Syria are asking for the rights that every human being is entitled to. And they are lookin g to this Assembly to speak with one voice to support them in this endeavour. Thank you.