Human Rights Violations in Syria - April 2024
Regions of control on the following maps is shown by sub-district and may not reflect the current situation on the ground
SJAC’s human rights violations map compiles data collected by our field team of documentation coordinators. Data is pulled from local media reports as well as interviews and conversations conducted by SJAC which would otherwise be inaccessible to a larger international audience. This map provides a thorough breakdown of the ongoing human rights situation in the territories of Syria’s four main political and military authorities. These include the Syrian Government, Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham, Syrian Democratic Forces / Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (SDF/AANES), and Turkish-occupied areas.
SJAC’s human rights map will be updated monthly with the most up-to-date information on human rights violations, major political events, and analysis of how the conflict is evolving.
Syrian Government-Controlled Regions
The Syrian government currently controls the majority of Syrian territory. In the south, which includes , , and governorates, government-affiliated military and security groups have been responsible for security since regaining control of the area in 2018. In southern Syria, particularly Daraa governorate, assassinations and other violent attacks against civilian and military personnel represent a major threat to security, with SJAC documenters noting a significant increase in these attacks in late 2023 and early 2024.
In April, local media outlets noted multiple instances of armed groups attacking vehicles and facilities belonging to government political security and military units, along with a large number of attacks on civilians. Attacks involved both firearms and IEDs. In many incidents in April, media outlets attributed attacks to “unknown militants.” Other reports note that conflicts between multiple armed groups (even when both groups involved operate on behalf of the government) caused civilian casualties as well. For example, in Daraa’s Al-Sanamayn, clashes between two rival local groups affiliated with the government intelligence and security services on April 7 killed at least 7 people, including women and children.
Civilians in Suwayda governorate have held protests against the government since fall 2023, calling for reforms and regime change. While they are not currently as prevalent as they were at their peak in fall 2023, protests continued through the month of April, with smaller gatherings throughout the week and larger protests on Fridays. Government response to the protests in Suwayda has been relatively restrained overall, but security forces killed a civilian protester who attempted to enter a government building in February, sparking public backlash. In April , in retaliation for the government’s arrest of a college student from Suwayda, Suwayda residents kidnapped a group of government military and security officials in Suwayda city. The government subsequently released the student. Media reports highlighted government military reinforcements heading towards Suwayda at the end of the month, with SJAC documenters noting that the reinforcements may be a form of intimidation and a deterrent against escalation, but could also be a precautionary measure in case popular unrest in Suwayda intensifies.
Israel often strikes government-controlled territory in Syria, frequently targeting locations with significant Iranian militia activity. In an unprecedented strike on April 1, Israel bombed the Iranian consulate building in , adjacent to the Iranian embassy. The attack destroyed the building and killed at least two civilians - a woman and her son. Israeli airstrikes targeting Iranian-affiliated militia positions in Deir Ezzor governorate have reportedly prompted displacement of civilians in recent months.
Housing, land, and property violations are a common occurrence in government-controlled territory. Earlier in the conflict, government forces and affiliated militias pillaged opposition-controlled areas that they attacked in order to render these areas uninhabitable. After regaining control of Damascus and Rif Damascus governorates, the government now forbids residents of certain areas from returning to and/or rebuilding their homes. In some cases, such as and neighboring neighborhood in southern Damascus, civilians must obtain a “security approval” from the government to be allowed to return or visit. According to SJAC documenters, obtaining such a permit typically requires a combination of connections in the government, payment of bribes, and demonstrating that no one in one’s family has been involved with opposition factions or activism. In April, the government military security conducted a campaign in Al-Yarmouk camp, Al-Hajar Al-Aswad, and Al-Tadamon neighborhoods, verifying that people visiting in these areas had obtained the required permits, and stating that those without permits would soon be removed. SJAC documenters state that while obtaining permits is theoretically possible, this type of campaign aims to further disincentivize original inhabitants of Al-Yarmouk and surrounding areas, who were typically opposed to the government, from returning to their homes.
SDF-Controlled Regions
The Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES) governs parts of , , and governorates. Despite ongoing political and military support from the United States and other western allies, the Syrian Democratic Forces and other affiliated military/security entities in this territory engage in significant violations against the population, including arbitrary detention and poor treatment of detainees.
The SDF also condones child recruitment, which is conducted by an affiliated group called the Revolutionary Youth. Media reports from April discuss the Revolutionary Youth’s kidnapping of at least three children this month, including two girls, from Tall Rifaat , Manbij , and Al-Raqqa , taking them to youth conscription camps. The family of the child kidnapped in Manbij reportedly reached out to the authorities, but they denied any knowledge of the girl’s whereabouts. SJAC has conducted several interviews with families of those kidnapped in similar circumstances, and detailed this pattern of violations more thoroughly in a public report .
Another threat to civilians in AANES-controlled areas, especially northern areas of Aleppo, Al-Raqqa, and Al-Hasakeh governorates, are Turkish attacks, which have been ongoing since its incursion into northeast Syria in 2019. Turkish shelling and drone attacks in northeast Syria target members of the SDF and affiliated security forces, but also result in civilian casualties. Turkish actions often target civilian infrastructure as well. Residents of Al-Hasakeh city, for example, have no access to running water or consistent electricity due to Turkish actions. Residents report that Turkish shelling of electrical plants/towers in December 2023 caused extensive power outages for Al-Hasakeh city and the surrounding areas which have persisted throughout April. Al-Hasakeh city residents also had no access to running water in April, as Turkey and Turkish-backed factions control the flow of water to Al-Hasakeh city. This current cutoff began in 2023. The lack of water and electricity forces residents to pay large amounts of money each month to meet their basic needs through alternative (and expensive) means, such as generators and drinking water purchased from water tanker trucks. In April, Turkish-supported factions also attacked the Al-Saida fuel station in Al-Qahtaniyah, one of the largest fuel stations in the northeast, causing a large shortage of fuel and driving up transportation costs for civilians.
Corruption is another source of frustration and exploitation for civilians in areas controlled by the Autonomous Administration. Civilians in the northeast have reported significant housing, land and property violations in early 2024 due to collusion between lawyers and AANES officials. SJAC has spoken directly with victims of such violations. At the behest of officials, lawyers reportedly forge property documents and titles for submission to the authorities, in exchange for large amounts of money or portions of the land itself, effectively stealing the land from its original owners.
Turkish-Controlled Regions
Following Turkiye’s incursions into Syria during Operation Euphrates Shield and Operation Olive Branch (2016-18), Turkiye and proxy forces under the Syrian National Army (SNA) have controlled areas of Northern Aleppo and regularly commit violations against civilian populations.
In April 2024, SNA factions reportedly arrested a number of civilians (mainly Kurdish) in and . These arrests are not a new phenomenon - they have occurred since Turkey and the SNA factions gained control of the area in 2018. Many of those arrested are charged with previous “cooperation with the Autonomous Administration,” usually referring to actions taken when the area was controlled by the AANES prior to 2018. Accusations of “cooperation” with the AANES could refer to actions such as performing mandatory military service required by the AANES “Self Defense” law, or working civilian jobs (teachers, nurses, municipality employees) for the Autonomous Administration.
In April, SJAC received several reports of civilians being detained without charges as well, including a 55 year old Kurdish woman living in Afrin. In many cases, following these arrests, the factions offer that the detainee can be released after paying a sum of money (typically thousands of dollars) to members of the Turkish-backed National Army factions who arrested them. According to SJAC’s sources, the arrests serve to intimidate the Kurdish population in northern Aleppo, and they provide an alternative source of income for members of SNA factions, whose salaries are extremely low.
Since the SNA’s control of the area in 2018, SJAC documenters have received regular reports of SNA factions committing housing, land, and property violations against the local population, particularly in Afrin. This month, armed thieves robbed a home in Afrin, stealing sheep, solar panels, gas canisters and other items. The owner of another home in Afrin city was forced to pay $1,500 to regain access to his home, which a squatter had been living in without permission. In the past few months, SJAC’s documenters have received multiple reports of original owners attempting to reclaim their land and property, but being severely beaten and/or detained for doing so. In other types of property violations, civilians in areas controlled by Turkey also have no method of recourse for violations by members of SNA factions. Five members of an unspecified SNA faction reportedly stopped a group of civilians driving from Bulbul to the city of Afrin in late April, seizing everything in their possession, including large quantities of food, mobile phones, and nearly $2,000 dollars.
Civilians in northern Aleppo regularly experience other forms of conflict-related violence as well, due to ongoing conflict between the SNA and the SDF, between the SNA and government forces, or between competing factions within the SNA. Media reports often claim that perpetrators of IED attacks, which occur somewhat regularly in Azaz and Afrin, were paid by SDF affiliates to place their explosive devices, such as when a motorcycle rigged with explosives detonated and killed multiple civilians in February 2024. Following a similar vehicle-borne IED explosion in a crowded market in Azaz in March, which killed four civilians, authorities arrested two suspects. The suspects reportedly confessed in detention, stating they were paid by the SDF to place the explosive, although SJAC cannot independently verify such claims. In April, media reports claimed that during the military police’s transport of the perpetrators, unidentified gunmen attacked the vehicles, kidnapped the perpetrators, took them to the site of the explosion, and executed them. The Turkish-controlled Syrian Interim Government subsequently released a statement condemning the execution. Due to Turkey’s abolition of the death penalty in 2004, it is highly unlikely that the Turkish-controlled judiciary would have sentenced the perpetrators to death. SJAC documenters received reports that the execution was therefore well-received by many civilians in the area, who viewed execution as the appropriate punishment for this sort of crime that caused multiple civilian casualties.
Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham - Controlled Regions
Hay’at Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS), led by Abu Mohammad Al-Jolani, is a nominally independent Islamist political and military organization that controls parts of Idlib governorate, operating politically as the “Syrian Salvation Government.” Civilians in HTS-controlled Syria regularly experience arbitrary detention and torture, as well as ongoing airstrikes and artillery fire from the Syrian government and allies.
Since February 2024, civilians living in HTS-controlled territory, many of whom are displaced from other areas of Syria, have protested HTS actions including its widespread arbitrary detention practices and torture in its detention facilities. In April, protests against HTS continued, calling for Al-Jolani to step down and for reforms to the security services. Throughout the month, protests occurred in , , , , , and . So far, HTS and Al-Jolani have responded to protests with promises of reform to the security services, including placing the previously-independent General Security Directorate under the Ministry of the Interior to facilitate greater accountability. HTS has also granted amnesty to over 400 prisoners, including prisoners of conscience, and promised further reform to the detention system. In April, documenters received reports that the Salvation Government paid the USD equivalent of 47 kilograms of silver to the family of a detainee who died under torture in an HTS prison. SJAC is closely following reports of this “reparation” to determine if this action will become a pattern. SJAC documenters note that this payment coincides with ongoing protests, as HTS seeks to contain popular unrest about its security and detention practices.Towards the end of April, calls for continuous sit-ins, rather than individual protest gatherings, circulated in major cities like Ariha. Protesters reportedly demand genuine reforms, resulting in tangible changes on the ground, and many are still calling for Al-Jolani to step down.
Despite an official ceasefire truce signed in 2020, since late 2023, Syrian government forces and their allies, including Iranian-affiliated militias and Russian aircraft, have ramped up attacks on civilian targets in HTS-controlled areas and areas immediately surrounding it, including southern Idlib, along with parts of Hama and western Aleppo governorates. These attacks often result in civilian casualties. According to SJAC documenters, these attacks aim to demonstrate the Syrian government’s continued presence and intent to regain control of the entirety of Syrian territory. Government forces also attack civilians in HTS-controlled areas as a means of retaliation for attacks that target government soldiers.
In April, Syrian government forces used various types of artillery, including mortars and rockets, to target civilian areas. Government forces targeted a residential neighborhood in with rockets, killing a woman and her child and injuring nine other civilians. Government shelling in Ariha in late April injured two civilians, including a child. Drone attacks pose another major threat to civilians in this area, and Syrian government forces have dramatically increased their use of drones against civilian targets in recent months. In addition to Russian and Iranian drones used in northwest Syria, government forces use primitive, locally-built first-person view (FPV) suicide drones to attack their targets. These explosive-laden drones, which operate by crashing into their targets, kill and injure civilians in Idlib and Hama governorates with increasing frequency as their range continues to increase. Rather than being GPS-controlled, an operator guides an FPV drone by viewing the area below remotely through a camera, and the drone cannot return once it is launched. For these reasons, FPV drones often hit civilian objects such as civilian homes, cars, and livestock, all of which occurred in April.