Switzerland backs investigations as UN raises detention concerns

Switzerland has demanded independent investigations into alleged abuses across four parts of the Middle East. Speaking at the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva on September 8, Swiss ambassador Thomas Gürber cited reports of torture and sexual violence in detention, alongside attacks on civilians in Israel, the Palestinian territories, Lebanon and Iran.

Gürber urged all parties to comply with international law and said those responsible must face accountability. His intervention places Switzerland behind a fact-finding approach that can establish what happened, identify perpetrators and preserve evidence for later legal action. The Swiss statement did not assign criminal responsibility. It called for credible investigations capable of doing so.

The timing matters. UN investigators were presenting a separate set of concerns about Syria and Israel, including the reported detention and transfer of Syrians from territory inside Syria to Israel. The Geneva forum therefore became a point where Switzerland's diplomatic position met allegations involving detention, occupation, civilian harm and missing people.

Gürber also welcomed the reappointment of UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk for another four-year term. The appointment faced opposition from the United States and Russia, adding a diplomatic dimension to Switzerland's call for stronger scrutiny.

UN investigators say 49 people, including two children, were being held by the Israeli military at the end of June after arrests inside Syrian territory. Fionnuala Ní Aoláin, a member of the International Commission of Inquiry on Syria, told the Human Rights Council that the detainees were reportedly taken to Israel.

Their whereabouts and condition remain largely unknown, she said. Israel has reportedly denied the commission access to them. Ní Aoláin said the reported conduct could amount to war crimes, while stressing that she was speaking under a mandate from the Human Rights Council and not on behalf of the UN as a whole.

The commission also criticised Israel's growing military presence in Syria. After visiting the area in July with fellow commissioner Monia Ammar, Ní Aoláin described a network of temporary checkpoints and military positions that had significantly affected Syrian civilians. She said Israeli military activity had become sustained and entrenched over the past two years, with homes destroyed.

Those findings require verification through access to detainees, military records, witness testimony and other evidence. Without access, investigators face limits in establishing the legal status of the arrests, the conditions of detention and the circumstances of any transfer across the border.

Syria's own detention system remains under investigation, with thousands accused of links to the ousted Assad regime. Ní Aoláin said Syrian authorities must review the legality of those detentions. Damascus has said that thousands of investigations or prosecutions are under way, but the commission warned that establishing a credible rule of law presents “immense challenges”.

The investigators also raised unresolved cases linked to violence in Suwayda last year. More than 1,500 people were killed, and information remains limited about people reported missing or detained. In March, the commission concluded that acts amounting to war crimes had been committed during the violence.

Accountability mechanisms operate at several levels. The Syria Commission of Inquiry gathers information, assesses alleged violations and reports to the Human Rights Council. National authorities can investigate and prosecute where they have jurisdiction. International legal processes may also rely on the documentation collected by commissions, provided evidence meets the relevant standards.

The process depends on cooperation, access and protection for witnesses. It also requires investigators to examine alleged abuses by every party. Switzerland's position reflects that principle: international law applies to states and armed actors across the conflict, and allegations must be tested through independent procedures rather than settled by political claims.

More than 2,000 people, mainly women and children, remain detained in Roj camp in northeastern Syria, according to UN investigators. Ní Aoláin described the detention as “the largest-scale arbitrary detention on security grounds” currently taking place anywhere in the world. She added that more than 100 children are being held at military sites.

The commission's concern covers people detained over alleged links to jihadist groups. It has continued to criticise the lack of a clear legal process and the prolonged confinement of families. The investigators also said thousands of Druze remain displaced after recent insecurity, while local and national authorities remain locked in a continuing dispute over the region's future.

These cases broaden the accountability picture beyond the reported Israeli detentions. Syria's post-Assad authorities face pressure to review detention linked to the former regime, account for missing people and prosecute abuses committed during recent violence. Israel faces scrutiny over military operations and alleged transfers from Syrian territory. The United States also remains subject to criticism in the investigators' wider assessment of regional human rights conditions.

For Switzerland, the developments carry a direct diplomatic relevance. Bern has sought a role in post-Assad Syria while maintaining its tradition of supporting international law, humanitarian access and multilateral institutions. Its influence will depend on whether calls made in Geneva produce cooperation, documentation and consequences.

Switzerland's call will be measured by what happens after the speeches in Geneva. Independent investigations need access to detention sites, records and witnesses. They also need authorities to preserve evidence, disclose the fate of missing people and respond to findings. The UN commissions can document and report, but they cannot replace national courts or compel every government to cooperate.

The immediate issues are clear. Investigators want information about the 49 Syrians reportedly transferred to Israel, including two children. They are seeking clarity on the legal basis and conditions of detention. They are also tracking destroyed homes, military checkpoints and the broader expansion of Israel's presence in Syria. In parallel, they are pressing Syrian authorities to review thousands of detentions and clarify cases linked to Suwayda and the former Assad regime.

For Swiss diplomacy, the challenge is to sustain scrutiny across competing alliances and crises. Bern's statement covered alleged abuses in Israel, the Palestinian territories, Lebanon and Iran, while the investigators' report addressed conduct by Israel, Syrian authorities and other actors. That broad remit gives Switzerland a consistent position, but it also demands persistence.

The next stages will unfold through Human Rights Council reporting, commission documentation and any national or international proceedings that follow. Access and evidence will determine whether allegations become established findings.