Photos taken by a police defector from Assad regime, appearing to show dead prisoners, starved, brutally beaten and strangled shocked the world, but Russia and Iran were muted in their reaction. Turkish academics urge UN to take responsibility and submit the information to the international criminal court.
The defector code-named, “Caesar” Syrian military police officer for 13 years, given the job of documenting deaths in custody by Syrian regime, said the reason for releasing these pictures to world media, was for justice so that "the killers could be prosecuted”.
The photos are only the tip of the iceberg with regards to the attrocities committed by the regime since the war started just under three years ago, says Tayyar Ari professor of international relations at Uludag university in Bursa. However, he adds perhaps we will talk about these photos for couple more weeks but Asad will continue to massacre his people.
Ari says he is committing these crimes under the pretext of fighting against terrorist groups like Al Qaeda.
Iran dismissed the photos as anti-government propaganda, timed for release right before Geneva II peace talks, Iran Foreign Ministry spokesman Marzieh Afkham said to AA.
Russian reaction was similiarly muted. Despite the recent photographic evidence of appearing to show torture by the regime, “the most violent crimes are committed by Jihadists" said Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.
He added that in the conflict war crimes are being "committed by both parties" but added that “war crimes committed in Syria should be investigated but only after a ceasefire and the situation is stabilized”.
Assad's time is up, the reality of what these photos show can not be posponed says international relations professor at Sabanci University, Bulent Aras.
“The UN must act. Who is responsible for this war crime? It is not right to wait until a ceasefire in Syria to discuss these photograps” said Aras.
"Assad has been given legitimacy from support of Russia and Iran. However this support can no longer continue" says Aras.
Assad is not a legitimate actor any more, he adds.
Russia also has backed Syrian regime when according to official data, around 1,500 civilians were killed and thousands of others wounded in the chemical weapons attack in Syria - a red line defined by White House - in August 2013
More than 100,000 people have been killed in the three-year conflict in Syria, and more than eight million Syrians have become refugees in the neighboring countries of Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan and Iraq, according to the UN.
