We strongly condemn the escalating violence, torture, and hate crimes targeting sexual and gender minorities in Syria. We are deeply alarmed by reports and images emerging from multiple regions in Syria, which reveal a surge in cases of assault, violence, harassment, discrimination, physical and sexual torture, and death threats against members of the LGBTQIA+ community. These violations are accompanied by hate speech and incitement to violence against them, openly and boastfully carried out by armed groups affiliated with the current Syrian government, as well as by non-state armed groups.
Since December 2024, our organizations, in collaboration with human rights activists, have been documenting a series of severe violations targeting LGBTQIA+ individuals in Syria. These include entrapment through dating apps, home raids, abductions, arbitrary arrests, torture, humiliation, threats of physical violence and disfigurement, as well as other dangerous practices such as forced filming and public shaming—putting victims at increasing and continuous risk. These violations have been perpetrated by groups affiliated with the current government as well as non-state armed groups.
Syria Must Not Become a Torture State Again
The violations we have witnessed constitute a blatant breach of fundamental human rights, as guaranteed by international treaties and conventions, including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which upholds the dignity and inherent rights of all individuals, and the Convention Against Torture.
These crimes and violations pose a direct threat to the values of citizenship, equality, and human dignity values that were at the core of the 2011 revolution for freedom and dignity. Syria cannot be rebuilt while violence and torture prevail. The advancement of human rights in Syria is a fundamental condition for the country’s development, economic prosperity, and improved international relations.
Allowing such practices to go unaccountable only encourages their continuation and further deepens the suffering of victims. We must firmly and unequivocally reject all forms of torture and work to ensure the protection of all individuals from any form of threat or abuse, especially innocent people whose only “crime” is being themselves.
We call on the international and local community, as well as all individuals and organizations advocating for human rights and relife, to support the LGBTQIA+ community in Syria by all possible means and with urgent action. We also urge collective efforts to ensure the protection of their rights and dignity and the accountability of perpetrators. Above all, we call on everyone to work towards ensuring that Syria does not become a torture state once again.
Guardians of Equality Movement & Seen for Sexual and Gender Justice
Issued on: 08-02-2025