The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Turk, pointed out this Friday that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) were involved in nearly 300 "incidents" within Syria "only" during the month of September, and warned that nearly 50 Syrian citizens remain in the custody of Israeli authorities in connection with these operations.
His spokesperson, Shabia Mantoo, expressed her concern about the "ongoing impact" of Israeli armed incursions on the civilian population in southern Syria. In a statement, she estimated 280 "incidents" recorded in September, which represents "the highest monthly figure since the beginning of the year."
According to the UN Human Rights Office, these actions encompass "raids on homes, restrictions on freedom of movement, harassment and intimidation of the civilian population, destruction of livelihoods, and arbitrary detentions," facts that the agency continues to collect and verify on the ground.
The institution estimates that at least 49 Syrians remain detained by Israel, which would indicate that they may have suffered "prolonged detention periods --in some cases exceeding a year--, lack of information about the reasons for their detention, as well as transfers between various unknown facilities, and torture and ill-treatment."
The UN admits that it has not yet been able to confirm "independently a comprehensive and updated total figure" of detained Syrian individuals, but emphasizes that the abuses reported by Israeli authorities "include beatings, forcing to stand for long periods of time, unleashing dogs against detainees, and threats to harm them and their families."
According to the information gathered by the agency, at least 14 detainees were released between August and September. However, it warns that new detentions continue to occur and stresses that "serious concerns persist regarding protection, as the Israeli Army frequently accesses the affected (Syrian) villages."
"On Wednesday we received reports according to which a disabled farmer was shot and temporarily detained during an Israeli Army raid in Jubbata al Jashab, north of Quneitra. The man tried to move away from the area, scared by the presence of soldiers, after which Israeli forces opened fire and hit him in the leg. He was then detained while bleeding and released an hour and a half later," the office denounced in a statement in which episodes of murder attributed to the IDF in Syrian territory are also described.
Mantoo has called for a "swift and impartial investigation" into all these events, emphasizing that "outside the context of hostilities, lethal force can only be resorted to when strictly unavoidable to protect life."
In this regard, he has directly appealed to the Israeli authorities to stop "actions that harass or intimidate the civilian population in Syrian villages, including raids, restrictions on freedom of movement, detentions, and destruction of crops."
"No person can be detained without an adequate basis in International Law, and the important procedural guarantees provided in applicable International Human Rights Law and International Humanitarian Law, which protect all detained persons, must be fully respected. All detainees must be treated in accordance with their dignity and their Human Rights," the spokesperson concluded.