Amnesty International: Syrian regime committing war crimes by starving people to death

The Syrian regime carried out war crimes and crimes against humanity against Palestinian and Syrian civilians in Yarmouk, in the outskirts of Damascus, an Amnesty International report revealed.

In the report entitled “Squeezing the life out of Yarmouk” the international human rights organisation affirmed that the refugee camp has been under a “brutal” siege by Syrian regime forces.

It said that since July 2013, nearly 200 individuals died and access to crucial food and medical supplies was cut off. At least, 128 of those who died starved to death in the “catastrophic humanitarian crisis that has emerged”.

Philip Luther, director of the Middle East and North Africa Programme at Amnesty International, said: “Life in Yarmouk has grown increasingly unbearable for desperate civilians who find themselves starving and trapped in a downward cycle of suffering with no means of escape.

“Civilians are being treated like pawns in a deadly game in which they have no control.”

According to the report, Syrian regime forces and their allies, including the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine – General Command, have repeatedly carried out attacks against the camp. The attacks included air strikes and shelling with heavy weapons.

It said that the attacks targeted civilian buildings such as schools, hospitals and a mosque in Yarmouk. Some of the areas attacked had served as shelters for people who have been internally displaced by the conflict. Doctors and medical staff have also been targeted.

Luther said: “Launching indiscriminate attacks on civilian areas, leading to deaths and injuries, is a war crime. To repeatedly strike a heavily populated area, where the civilians have no means of escape, demonstrates a ruthless attitude and a callous disregard for the most basic principles of international humanitarian law.”

The report said that at least 60 per cent of the people remaining in Yarmouk are suffering from malnutrition. It reported residents speaking to Amnesty International saying that they had not eaten fruit or vegetables for several months. They said that prices have skyrocketed with a kilo of rice costing up to $100.

“Syrian forces are committing war crimes by using starvation of civilians as a weapon of war. The harrowing accounts of families having to resort to eating cats and dogs and civilians attacked by snipers as they forage for food, have become all too familiar details of the horror story that has materialised in Yarmouk,” Luther said.

The camp has also had its electricity power supply cut since April 2013.