Forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad carried out one of the bloodiest massacres in Syria's conflict, killing 108 people in Houla district in May, the United Nations said.
Forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad carried out one of the bloodiest massacres in Syria's conflict, killing 108 people in Houla district in May, the United Nations said on Wednesday.
The victims of the atrocity in the village of Taldou included 49 children. At the time, the identity of the perpetrators was unclear and Assad blamed the rebels.
But an investigation by the UN Human Rights Council concluded that the Shabiha, a pro-regime militia, was responsible, along with regular government forces. The massacre also met the definition of a war crime and the regime had failed in its legal obligation to investigate.
"On the basis of available evidence, the commission concluded that the elements of the war crime of murder have been met," read the UN report. "The killing of multiple civilians, including women and children, was deliberate."
There were "reasonable grounds to believe that the perpetrators of the crime" were "government forces and 'Shabiha' members".
The Shabiha is an irregular militia recruited from Assad's Alawite minority. As such, the regime has sometimes denied responsibility for its operations. However, the UN said "credible information" led to the conclusion that it acted "in concert" with government forces.
The investigation said atrocities had been carried on the regime's orders and the complexity of the military operations "indicate the involvement at the highest levels of the armed and security forces and the Government".
It added that the rebels had also carried out "war crimes, including murder, extra-judicial execution and torture".
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