It seems the Syrian conflict is just one set of horror stories after another. The latest batch of over 50 thousand photos of about 11 thousand dead detainees has sent a shock wave of condemnation and disgust across the world. If indeed these war crimes by the government troops are proven true, it would signify one of the worst war crimes so far in the 21st century. As with most events recently in Syria, the truth is a rare and illusive commodity to come by. Between allegations and counter allegations, forgery, misinformation and contradictory evidence, getting to the real facts is next to impossible in this most bitterly fought war, both on the battle field and in the media. Seeing through this opaque fog of war involves dedicated research, cross-referencing and in many cases a professional investigation, especially when it comes to serious matters of large scale human rights abuses. On the face of it, it's quite clear that the Syrian regime holds in very low regard international law involving human rights or conduct during war. NGO's like Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have throughout this almost three-year-old conflict documented dozens of credible reports detailing widespread human rights abuses, including torture, summary executions and rape. All shrugged off by the Syrian regime as unfounded, biased or essentially inaccurate since the evidence was mainly second hand witness testimony. The same argument is being made today against these fresh allegations, and in fact Bouthaina Shaaban, advisor to the Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad, and part of the government's delegation to the ongoing Geneva 2 talks, even went so far as to accuse the rebel forces themselves of committing those murders and then photographing them to frame the regime. Other arguments being made include the curious timing of the release of the photos, just a few hours ahead of the crucial and long awaited talks painstakingly arranged between the regime and the opposition in Geneva. The source of the material is said to be a defector codenamed "Caesar", who allegedly defected from the military police. His job was a military photographer. The horrific photos were apparently leaked or perhaps sold to the Qataris who did not in turn take it to an NGO for verification, but instead to a London-based law firm. The Syrian government also points out that the police, as well as state hospitals, keep photographs of all unidentified bodies, tagged with numbers signifying where they are to be buried, on record for future identification by family members. But that is not to say the claims are wholly unsubstantiated. Seasoned Syria observers and those with working knowledge of how the Syrian police state operates will tell you that abuse, torture and extra judicial killings are systemic and nothing new. The opposition for their part is using these allegations as fodder in their ongoing media war with the regime, as shown in the opening statements of their delegates, demonizing it as a murderous tyranny which slaughters its own people. The regime's retort is accusations against its opponents of sponsoring terrorism, as well as recounting the rebel forces' own crimes. In fact, this war of words is until now the only significant event at the Geneva talks. And so it would seem it is business as usual. It is doubtful if this fresh evidence of war crimes will ever be seriously investigated, or if anyone will be brought to justice, at least in the foreseeable future. If the chemical attacks in Ghuta last August are anything to go by, it'll be just another hideous and dark chapter in Syria's recent history, soon closed and forgotten. Meanwhile, the talks will go on, just as the war and killing will still drag on, and unfortunately it would seem this will not be the last time we'll hear of war crimes on an industrial scale, perpetrated against Syrians by fellow Syrians.
