Syria may face war crimes charges over 'torture and 11,000 executions'

Three former war crimes prosecutors said that there is evidence supporting claims that Syria tortured and executed about 11,000 detainees.

17:06 21 January 2014

A report released by three former war crimes prosecutors claim that Syria has systematically tortured and executed about 11,000 detainees since the start of uprising.

The report, which was commissioned by Qatar, is based on the evidence of a defected military police photographer who worked alongside other allues to smuggle about 55,000 digital images of some 11,000 dead detainees out of Syria.

The photographer, referred to only as Caesar, said that it was his job to take photographs of the corpses for the issuance of death certificates and to confirm that execution orders had been carried out.

The report says the images of beaten and strangled bodies are "clear evidence" of "systemic torture and killing of detained persons by agents of the Syrian government".

However, Damascus has denied claims of abuse.

The report was released a day before peace talks are due to begin Switzerland. The peace talk, known as Geneva II, is seen as the biggest diplomatic effort yet to end the three-year conflict, which has left more than 100,000 dead and millions displaced.

Meanwhile, Human Rights Watch have also released an annual report on Tuesday accusing China and Russia of allowing abuses to take place after they blocked actions through the United Nations. Also, the report accuses both countries of human right abuses including torture and extrajudicial killings.