US calls on UN to release prisoners from Assad’s jails

Washington has called for the immediate release of civilian prisoners from Assad’s jails and has requested for the UN to “double its efforts” to secure their release, Political Coordinator of the US Mission to the United Nations (UN) Rodney Hunter announced on Thursday.

Addressing the UN Security Council, Hunter asserted: “The Assad regime’s actions to delay justice for the families of political prisoners can no longer be overlooked.”

“The UN must redouble its efforts to secure the unilateral and large-scale release of civilians in regime custody as an urgent step to advance the political reconciliation process between the regime and the Syrian people.”

He also urged: “The Syrian people need political and constitutional reforms which remove this fear of arbitrary detention by the Assad regime.”

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Hunter called on the Syrian regime to: “Immediately and unilaterally release the thousands of civilians being held arbitrarily in detention centres.”

Meanwhile, he pressed for the Syrian regime to: “Grant humanitarian organisations and the UN immediate access to all facilities to ensure that detainees’ medical care and preventative measures against the coronavirus are taken care of,” as well as for “the disclosure of lists of all detainees and missing persons, including death records and burial sites.”