UN Rights Chief Flags Summary Executions as Suweida Toll Mounts

The United Nations’ top human-rights official warned that recent fighting in Syria’s southern Suweida province has been accompanied by grave abuses, including summary executions and arbitrary killings. Volker Türk said his office had verified the unlawful killing of at least 13 people on 15 July and received credible reports of six further executions the same day, urging “independent, prompt and transparent” investigations. The Syrian Network for Human Rights estimates that 321 people have been killed since clashes erupted on Sunday, while the International Organization for Migration says about 80,000 residents have fled. Nearly 2,000 families remain displaced inside the province as roadblocks and insecurity continue to impede the delivery of humanitarian and medical aid. Violence has pitted Druze and Bedouin armed groups against each other and against Syrian government forces, despite an official cease-fire announced earlier this week. Damascus has begun deploying security units in the area, saying the move aims to protect civilians, though local monitors report continued exchanges of fire. International pressure is mounting for an end to the bloodshed. Britain’s Foreign Secretary called for the protection of civilians and unfettered aid access, the U.S. Secretary of State demanded a halt to ongoing abuses, and U.S. Senator Marco Rubio said ending the fighting is essential if Syria hopes to remain unified and free of Islamic State or Iranian domination. All three stressed that those responsible for atrocities must be held accountable.