| answer text |
<p>The UK uses several tools to put pressure on the Syrian regime to release detainees,
which is a key tenet of UN Security Council Resolution 2254. We recognise that justice
and accountability for detainees is a central issue for the UN-led political process
and we fully support the UN Syria Envoy's efforts to work for the release of detainees,
as a vital step towards a political settlement to end the conflict. The UK has contributed
over £13 million since 2012 in support of Syrian and international efforts to gather
evidence and assist victims of human rights abuses and violations. Additionally we
continue to pursue sanctions as a policy tool to hold the Syrian regime to account
and to bring about a peaceful solution to the conflict. We have raised the plight
of detainees at the UN Security Council and through our leadership at the Human Rights
Council where we have included language on enforced disappearance in recent Syria
Resolutions. We support the UN's call to the Assad regime and Syrian armed groups
to release a sufficient number of detainees to prevent COVID-19 spreading in detention
facilities, as well as their urgent request to allow humanitarian actors and medical
teams unhindered access to prisons.</p>
|
|
