“Thousands” of bodies and human remains were found this morning near Damascus by journalists from the pan-Arab al Jazeera TV which showed live images of the discovery near Qutayfa, north-east of the capital. The al Jazeera correspondent frames white plastic bags with remains of bodies with numbers on them.
“It is likely that these bodies come from the regime’s political prisons, such as Sednaya,” says the journalist. “This land is approximately 5 thousand m2 in size”, states the journalist, showing the area which roughly corresponds to the surface of a regular football pitch.
From the G7: “We support an inclusive political transition process in Syria”
“We, the leaders of the Group of Seven (G7), reaffirm our commitment to the Syrian people and offer our full support to an inclusive, Syrian-led political transition process in the spirit of the principles of Security Council Resolution 2254” of the UN. This is what we read in a statement by the G7 leaders on Syria. “We are ready to support a transition process which, within this framework, leads to a credible, inclusive and non-sectarian government, which guarantees respect for the rule of law, universal human rights, including women’s rights, the protection of all Syrians, including religious and ethnic minorities, as well as transparency and accountability. The G7 will work with and fully support a future Syrian government that respects these standards and emerges from this process.”
“We are confident – the G7 leaders still state – that anyone who desires a role in the government of Syria will demonstrate a commitment to the rights of all Syrians, will avoid the collapse of state institutions, will work towards the recovery and rehabilitation of the nation and will guarantee the conditions for a safe and dignified return, on a voluntary basis, of all those who have been forced to flee the country”
“Assad is responsible for his crimes.” The Golan problem
G7 leaders stress “the importance of holding the Assad regime accountable for its crimes and we will continue to work with the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons and other partners to secure, declare and destroy remaining stockpiles of weapons chemicals in Syria. After decades of atrocities committed by the Assad regime, we stand with the Syrian people. We condemn terrorism and violent extremism in all its forms.” In the same statement, the Big Seven call on all Syrian parties “to preserve the territorial integrity and national unity of Syria, respecting its independence and sovereignty”, and reiterate “our support for the UN Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) , which monitors the Golan Heights between Israel and Syria.”
In this regard, the Israeli Foreign Ministry, responding to the request made yesterday by France for the IDF to leave the buffer zone between Israel and Syria, stated that the movements of troops in the territory were carried out after violations of the May disengagement agreement 1974 between the two countries. It cites “the entry of armed militants into the buffer zone in violation of the agreement, and attacks on positions of the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force in the zone, for which Israeli action was requested.”
“This was necessary for defensive reasons due to the threats posed by jihadist groups operating near the border, to prevent a scenario similar to that of 7 October in this area”, says the Foreign Ministry, adding that the operation is “limited and temporary”. Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar explained this to his French counterpart Jean-Noël Barrot in recent days: “Israel will continue to act to defend itself and guarantee the safety of its citizens, if necessary,” he said.
For its part, the political affairs department of the new Syrian government, formed by the rebels led by the Islamist group HTS who took control of the country after the fall of the regime, released a statement in which it thanks Egypt, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Bahrain, Oman and Italy “for having resumed the activities of their diplomatic missions in Damascus”.
Parliament and the Constitution were suspended for three months. The Kurds: “We are part of United Syria”
The new Syrian government will “suspend the Constitution and Parliament” during the three-month transition period, Obaida Arnaout, spokesperson for political affairs for the new authorities, told AFP on Thursday.
“A legal and human rights committee will be formed to examine the Constitution and then make changes,” he explained. The coalition of rebel groups that seized power in Syria on Sunday appointed the head of the transitional government for a three-month term.
And the Kurdish-Syrian forces have announced the decision to hoist the “flag of the revolution” waved by the Islamist insurgents who took power in Damascus and deposed Bashar’s regime on all the institutions of the de facto autonomous region of north-east Syria al Assad.
“We are part of united Syria and the Syrian people”, reads the statement from the Kurdish-Syrian forces released to the media a short while ago