Enab Baladi – Hassan Ibrahim
On the morning of the first day of Eid al-Fitr, the Syrian street was shaken by the incident of killing six civilians, most of whom were elderly, including a 12-year-old child in the village of Harf Binimra in the Tartus countryside. This was followed by the announcement from the General Security Administration regarding the arrest of the perpetrators and their commitment to hold them accountable.
The incident, along with prior bloody events and violations witnessed on the Syrian coast in early March, accompanied governmental acknowledgments of the existence of violations with promises of accountability, the formation of a committee to investigate the facts, and a committee to enhance civil peace. This was met with calls from elders, activists, and human rights advocates to stop the bloodshed and begin a process of accountability and justice.
Alongside the violations and promises to hold the criminals and those involved accountable, many insist on denial or skepticism about the occurrence of crimes or justify them, recalling abuses practiced by the previous regime and its security forces. This is deepening the rift among the components of society and does not pave the way for transitional justice in Syria.
The spread of denial, skepticism, and justification of crimes and violations has been considered by activists to be harsher than the crime itself, creating an environment for subsequent crimes and recalling the Syrian regime’s policy and its media narrative about the massacres committed by its forces. However, the current government acknowledged that elements committed those violations and vowed to hold them accountable.
Human rights advocates argue that denying and justifying the crime is not a viewpoint or an opinion, but rather an unethical and inhumane act that obscures the truth and aligns with injustice while participating in the crime. They call for standing in solidarity with the victims “all victims,” regardless of race, religion, or sect.
Awaiting accountability
The state of denial and justification of crimes was evident after violations occurred on the Syrian coast between March 6 and 10 of last month. This was one of the worst waves of violence the country has witnessed since the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime on December 8, 2024, resulting in the death of 803 people outside the law. This wave began with an ambush by armed individuals loyal to the ousted regime in the Syrian coast or what the Syrian government describes as “remnants of the Assad regime,” targeting security personnel of the government.
Dr. Anas Airout, a member of the Civil Peace Committee, stated during condolences to the families of the victims in the village of Harf Binimra that two perpetrators have been referred to the judiciary and are awaiting the results of the investigation, considering that these incidents undermine civil peace efforts.
Airout condemned the act of killing, stating that it is incompatible with religion, ethics, and upbringing, and that everyone is responsible and equal before the law. He stressed that civil peace does not mean overlooking the criminal and the murderer or forgiving them and bypassing justice.
On April 3, the Amnesty International Organization stated that the Syrian government must ensure accountability for the perpetrators of the wave of mass killings targeting Alawite civilians in the coastal areas and take immediate steps to ensure that no individual or group is targeted based on their sect.
The organization considered that the committee to investigate the facts is a positive step toward uncovering the circumstances of the violations and identifying the suspected perpetrators. It noted that the authorities must ensure that the committee has the necessary mandate, authority, expertise, and resources to effectively investigate these killings.
The Secretary-General of Amnesty International, Agnes Callamard, stated, “Without justice, Syria faces the risk of falling back into a cycle of atrocities and bloodshed.”
What lies beyond justification and denial?
Civil activist Abdul Rahman Taleb sees three reasons that drive individuals to justify and deny crime in Syria. The first is the fear of international sanctions or their continuation, considering that discussing the occurrence of crimes opens the door to these sanctions.
The second reason is driven by spite and mimicking the practices of the former regime’s thugs, under the pretext of “we were subjected to assaults, so we carry them out.” The third is rooted in extremism, considering that attacking another sect and fighting it is “permissible.”
Taleb told Enab Baladi that those who recall grievances and violations and massacres that occurred at the hands of the former Syrian regime believe they are achieving a form of justice or a substitute for it from their perspective, and that what is happening today in terms of violations is part of what they experienced before, which is a mistaken perception.
The activist considered that failing to recognize the crime and justifying it will not break the cycle of violence in Syria and will lead to further violations.
Denial first
Social media has become a platform reflecting the state of justification and denial of violations in Syria, as the increasing use of platforms and the rapid unfolding of events, along with daily news following the fall of the Assad regime, have led to the spread of misleading news and videos that contributed to an atmosphere of chaos and security breakdown. Additionally, remnants of the Assad regime have exploited media deception as a weapon to spread discord and undermine security.
Ahmad Primo, director of the Verify-sy platform, sees many reasons that drive the public to deny and justify crimes. The situation begins with denial, especially when the news source includes testimonies from individuals who may be unknown or using pseudonyms for security reasons, prioritizing the safety of sources in the field. Furthermore, constant media deception in Syria is prevalent alongside current issues.
Later, when evidence, photos, and testimonies from victims’ families or those who survived the committed crimes emerge, a percentage of those who denied the crimes acknowledged their occurrence “albeit reluctantly,” according to Primo, emphasizing that this acknowledgment is crucial at a minimum to restore the dignity of the victims’ families until justice is achieved.
Primo added to Enab Baladi that it is unfortunate to find crimes denied even by individuals associated with the community of civil activists and intellectuals, thinking that justifications contribute to thwarting some conspiracy against the nation and the revolution and preventing a counter-revolution, noting that there exists condemnation of the crimes and firm stances calling for a rule of law, not a state of revenge.
Primo believes that one reason for denial and justification is a kind of “resentfulness,” with a minority believing that individuals who were present in regime-controlled areas before December 8, 2024, are “thugs” and deserve to taste part of what the Syrian people have suffered, which is a mistaken perception.
To prevent the new era in Syria from turning into a copy of the previous criminal regime, we must all contribute to rejecting these crimes and call for, insist on, and affirm the importance of holding criminals accountable and excluding them from the political or military scene and from all state institutions in Syria.
Ahmad Primo, Director of the Verify-sy platform
After the fall of the Assad regime, investigations disclosed “suspicious campaigns” aimed at attacking the new Syrian administration, with a group of accounts and pages supporting the Assad regime, and a network of suspicious pages that were created simultaneously to promote self-governance and sectarian violence while advocating for dividing Syria and inciting discord.
Primo pointed out that online chaos has doubled compared to what is happening in reality, stressing the need for regulations and accountability for anyone who incites violence and the summons of those who spread false information to be dealt with sternly while ensuring the citizen’s right to express their opinion without restrictions.
A threat to the path of justice
The continued violations affect the path of accountability and transitional justice, which is still awaited in Syria nearly four months after the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime. Its delay raises fears about the impact on Syrians, especially the victims who suffered during the regime’s time and seek justice that alleviates their suffering and restores part of their rights.
The importance of applying transitional justice in Syria lies in it being a balanced alternative to two “highly dangerous” processes: one is completely closing the past and ignoring the legacy of violations, which is practically impossible as the effects of violations are ongoing and present. The other is veering towards individual or collective revenge, which may lead to the collapse of the idea of the state and plunge into a cycle of chaos and violence, according to rights activist and researcher at the Syrian Dialogue Center, Nawras al-Abdullah.
Legal expert and specialist in human rights and international criminal law, al-Mutassim al-Kilani, considered that justifying murder and denying crimes in Syria poses a serious threat to the path of justice and accountability, as they contribute to normalizing violence and nurturing a culture of impunity, leading to exacerbated feelings of injustice and opening the door to new cycles of revenge and instability.
Al-Kilani told Enab Baladi that denying crimes does not only protect the perpetrators but also impedes the documentation of the truth, distorts collective memory, and weakens the trust of victims and society in any judicial or political processes aimed at building sustainable peace.
The continuation of the phenomenon of denying crimes in Syria hampers efforts to achieve justice and makes it impossible to establish a state based on the rule of law, which threatens any possibility of achieving true stability.
Al-Mutassim al-Kilani, Legal expert
To confront these challenges, al-Kilani argues that it is essential to establish a transitional justice body, whose top priority should be to enhance independent documentation of crimes by creating truth commissions and preparing neutral legal reports based on reliable evidence and documented testimonies that cannot be denied.
Moreover, it is imperative to raise awareness within society about the dangers of justification and denial through media, education, and civil society, alongside identifying those responsible for committing war crimes and crimes against humanity, preparing for their legal accountability, whether through national or international courts, according to al-Kilani.
The Syrian lawyer added that institutional reform constitutes a fundamental pillar to ensure that violations do not recur by building judicial and security institutions that operate according to standards of justice and integrity. True peace cannot be achieved without addressing attempts to obscure the truth, as any reconciliation based on denial and deception is nothing more than a fragile truce that collapses quickly in the face of unacknowledged truths and unaccountable perpetrators.
Ahmad Primo, Director of the Verify-sy platform, believes that supporting the Syrian state is the only option to pull Syria out of any chaos that may arise later from these crimes. He asserts that the Syrian state is clear in its stance, as political and military officials have stated that these crimes will not go unpunished. Committees have been formed, which serves as evidence of the state’s acknowledgment of the existence of crimes and its concern that these crimes do not evolve into a pattern that characterizes the new era in Syria, which is what the Syrian people hope for and strive to achieve.
Primo hopes that the issue of transitional justice will be addressed with the required urgency in order to reduce the tension among a wide segment of Syrians and emphasizes the necessity of enacting strict laws to combat the prevalent hate speech and incitement that exists today on social media.