A landmark torture case brought against Syria by Canada and the Netherlands began at the UN’s highest court on Tuesday—with Damascus absent. While it is not a criminal case, torture survivors and family members of Syria’s disappeared say it marks another milestone in their long, slow fight for accountability.
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad visited China for the first time in nearly 20 years this week, deepening ties between the two countries in the hopes of increased financial support that may not be forthcoming.
In Deir e-Zor province, nearly two weeks of clashes between the Syrian Democratic Forces and Arab clans calling for self rule have come to an end, but residents are uneasy about what the future holds “after the clans were defanged.”
The use of private generators for electricity has been widespread for years in Syria, but expanded around Damascus in recent months amid signs of regime authorities moving to increasingly codify and regularize the informal trade.
As anti-Damascus protests in Suwayda move into a second week, they are developing and becoming more organized, while Druze religious leadership appears divided on what kind of change is needed.
Recent economic moves by Damascus impacted the cost of most basic goods and services, sparking a wave of protests in the country’s south and anger all the way to the coast.
For more than two years, Syria’s passport system has been in a crisis that is disrupting travel plans and opening the door for corruption and exploitation by passport brokers.
In the Bab Srijeh neighborhood of Old Damascus, residents say municipal permits to restore decaying buildings are elusive, but contractors with government connections hold the key.
The Netherlands and Canada are taking Syria to the top UN court for the systemic use of torture, while a General Assembly vote is expected this month on the establishment of a mechanism to clarify the fate of Syria’s disappeared.
For former residents of Darayya’s al-Khalij neighborhood southwest of Damascus, hopes of return are fading as fears of property violations mount seven years after the regime retook control. Residents are not allowed to return, but many also find themselves unable to sell.
