The Hague, (EFE).- Canada and the Netherlands submitted a joint request to the International Court of Justice (ICJ), the highest judicial body of the United Nations for the resolution of disputes between States, with the aim of initiating proceedings against Syria for the alleged violation of the Convention against Torture since 2011, since he allegedly committed, among other things, degrading treatment of detainees, forced disappearances, sexual violence, and the use of chemical weapons.
In their request, Canada and the Netherlands ask the ICJ to initiate proceedings against Syria “in relation to alleged violations of the Convention against Torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment” since at least 2011, when the war began.
“Syria has committed innumerable violations of international law, beginning at least in 2011, with its violent repression of civil protests, and continuing while the situation in Syria degenerated into a prolonged armed conflict,” both said, in what will be the first case. against the Syrian regime before international justice.
In addition, they stressed that these violations and cruel treatment include “terrible treatment of detainees, inhumane conditions in places of detention, forced disappearances, the use of sexual and gender-based violence, and violence against children.”
Use of chemical weapons
The two countries that brought the case state that the alleged violations also include the “use of chemical weapons, which has been a particularly abhorrent practice to intimidate and punish the civilian population, resulting in numerous deaths, injuries, and severe physical and mental health” to Syrians on the ground.
The jurisdiction of the ICJ over this case is based on article 36 of the Statute of the Court, and on article 30 of the Convention against Torture, of which both the claimant countries and Syria itself are signatory States.
Provisional measures against Syria
Given the seriousness of the case, Canada and the Netherlands also requested the indication of provisional measures against Syria, until the ICJ can enter into the matter, “to preserve and protect the life and physical and mental integrity of people inside Syria who currently are subjected to or at risk of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment”.
The rulings of this court are legally binding and obligatory for the States, but the ICJ does not have mechanisms for the execution of its sentences, so its compliance is left to the will of each country.