Washington, Feb. 19 (ANI): A United Nations commission has said fighters on both sides in Syria's civil war have committed atrocities and should be brought to justice.
The move comes as European Union Foreign Ministers extended an arms embargo on the country in hopes it would limit the ability of both sides to wage war.
The announcements had little meaning in Syria where rebels fought to capture airbases in the north and the forces of President Bashar al-Assad shelled rebellious areas throughout the country, Fox News reports.
The spreading violence in Syria despite international efforts to stop it reflects the dilemma that the nearly two-year-old conflict in Syria has posed for the international community.
International calls for a negotiated solution have gone nowhere, mostly because both sides still seek military victory.
According to the report, the report issued by the U.N.-appointed Commission of Inquiry on Syria served as a grim state-of-play on the brutal conflict that the international body said has killed more than 70,000 people since March 2011.
The 131-page report detailed deepening radicalization by both sides, who increasingly see the war in sectarian terms and rely on brutal tactics to advance their cause, spreading fear and hardship among the country's civilians, the report said.
The report accused both sides of atrocities, while saying that those committed by rebel fighters have not reached the 'intensity and scale' of the government's violations.
Regime forces and its associated militias have committed crimes against humanity, the report said, citing murder, torture and rape.
It said rebels have committed war crimes, including murder, torture, looting and hostage-taking.
The report also accused both sides of using child soldiers, citing the presence of fighters younger than 18 on the government side and under 15 among the rebels.
The commission said it will submit a new, confidential list of Syrians suspected of committing crimes against humanity to the U.N. high commissioner for human rights, Navi Pillay, next month.
According to the report, the commission, which has been appointed by the U.N. Human Rights Council, acknowledged that it had not been able to work inside Syria, a limitation that 'significantly limited' its ability to investigate alleged abuses - particularly those committed by rebels. (ANI)
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