Syrian journalists and human rights activists affirmed that the fallen regime's targeting of independent press and international agency correspondents constituted a systematic policy to obscure facts and prevent the truth from reaching the world. They pointed out that the killing, enforced disappearance, and persecution suffered by Syrian and international journalists during the years of the revolution reflect the scale of violations that affected media work.
They emphasized in statements to SANA, coinciding with the International Day to End Impunity for Crimes Committed against Journalists, that revealing the fate of missing journalists and holding those responsible for crimes against them accountable represents a legal and moral obligation that is not subject to a statute of limitations. This is a fundamental step to prevent the recurrence of violations and ensure the safety of media workers.
Systematic targeting to hide the truth
Baraa Othman, a member of the Executive Office of the Syrian Journalists Union, clarified that the fallen regime treated independent media and international agencies as a direct threat to its narrative. He noted that the restrictions imposed were not administrative or regulatory measures, but a systematic policy to control information and prevent the reality of what was happening in Syria from reaching the world.
Othman explained that the fallen regime proceeded to close offices of channels and agencies, restrict work permits, and monitor correspondents, leading to their persecution, arrest, and elimination in the field.
Revealing the fate of the missing and holding officials accountable
Othman affirmed that the case of the missing American journalist Austin Tays, along with files of missing Syrian and foreign media figures, is not limited to separate humanitarian issues, but falls within a broader framework concerning the safety of journalists and their right to practice their profession without fear or threat.
He stressed the necessity of keeping these issues present in the national memory and the transitional justice process, and that they should not be barred by the statute of limitations or reduced to numbers in records or commemorative photos, based on international conventions and resolutions that prohibit targeting media workers.
Othman pointed out that knowing the fate of every missing journalist, revealing the truth, and holding those responsible for violations accountable constitute a legal and moral obligation that cannot be bypassed. He affirmed that building a safe media environment in Syria requires working on three main paths: documenting the violations suffered by journalists and considering them an essential part of the transitional justice file.
Violations affecting international journalists
For his part, Fadl Abdul Ghani, director of the Syrian Network for Human Rights, clarified that the violations suffered by international journalists during the years of the revolution are based on documented facts. Among the most prominent is the killing of France 2 correspondent Gilles Jacquier in the Akrama neighborhood of Homs province in January 2012, after a mortar shell fell on a gathering of foreign journalists, making him the first Western journalist killed since the start of the Syrian revolution.
Abdul Ghani pointed to the killing of American journalist Marie Colvin and French photographer Rémi Ochlik, and the serious injury of British photographer Paul Conroy and French journalist Edith Bouvier, during the fallen regime's shelling of the Baba Amr neighborhood in Homs province in February 2012.
He added that Japanese journalist Mika Yamamoto was killed after being directly shot while covering clashes in the city of Aleppo alongside the revolutionaries, a fact confirmed by the Japanese Foreign Ministry after her body was transferred to Turkey. Additionally, New York Times correspondent Anthony Shadid died from a severe asthma attack while attempting to leave Syria via smuggling crossings, fleeing persecution by the security apparatus of the fallen regime.
Abdul Ghani pointed to the continued disappearance of American journalist Austin Tays since August 2012, with his fate unresolved to this day. He referred to the default judgment issued by the US Federal Court on January 30, 2019, regarding the targeting of journalists in the Baba Amr neighborhood of Homs in 2012, which awarded damages totaling $302.5 million, including $300 million in punitive damages.
He noted that the protection of journalists is guaranteed by Article 79 of Additional Protocol I to the Geneva Conventions and Customary Rule 34 contained in the study on Customary International Humanitarian Law issued by the International Committee of the Red Cross. The UN General Assembly adopted November 2 of each year as the International Day to End Impunity for Crimes Committed against Journalists in 2013.
Source: Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA)
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