Colvin v Syrian Arab Republic
The judgement in “Colvin V. Syria” found the Syrian Arab Republic liable for the extrajudicial killing of US journalist Marie Colvin in a deliberate artillery attack against the Baba Amr Media Centre in Homs, on 22 February 2012, as part of “Syria’s long-standing policy of violence” used to target journalists and suppress dissent. In issuing its verdict, the court further awarded significant damages of over $ 302 million. The case was built by the Center for Justice and Accountability (CJA) on behalf of Colvin’s relatives. CIJA provided extensive evidentiary assistance including original Syrian Regime documents, access to insider witnesses and an expert report on the structures of Syria’s military and security-intelligence apparatus authored by CIJA’s Senior Military Analyst.
A landmark ruling on extrajudicial killing
The court found that Colvin’s extrajudicial killing constitutes a violation of the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act, which allows victims or relatives of US citizens who have been subjected to killing and torture abroad by a foreign government to seek redress before a US court. The court’s opinion draws on a wide range of corroborating evidence to demonstrate the “comprehensive intelligence gathering effort” by the Syrian Regime to identify the whereabouts of foreign journalists, including Colvin, in the besieged neighborhood of Baba Amr in Homs. Once their location in the Media Center in Baba Amr was uncovered, the Regime proceeded to launch an artillery attack against the premises “for the purpose of killing the journalists inside”. The attack resulted in the killing of Colvin and French photographer Remi Ochlik. Many other journalists and activists in the building were left severely wounded; it is reported that over eighty civilians were killed in attacks directed against Baba Amr, on the same day.
Exposing the Syrian Regime’s system of violent suppression
The judgement in “Colvin v Syria Arabic Republic” is also significant as it represents the first verdict to hold the Syrian Regime responsible for atrocities committed amid the country’s decade-long war. While the suit was focused directly on the events in Baba Amr, it provided an unprecedented opportunity to judicially examine extensive evidence regarding the systematic and highly regulated nature of the Regime’s campaign to quell civil decent from the very start of the conflict. The court’s opinion provides a wide-ranging examination of the Syrian Regime’s response to the 2011 popular uprising and suppression of independent and foreign media, finding that the level of violence was extreme.
Evidence Base
The civil complaint was built over a number of years and its evidentiary base rests on a wide array of analytical reports, original Syrian Regime documentation and witness statements. Expert reports outlining Syrian politics and policies based on the authors´ subject matter expertise, diplomatic cables and UN reports were provided by then United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Promotion and Protection of the Right to Freedom of Opinion and Expression, David Kaye and former US Ambassador to Syria, Robert Ford. An additional expert report on economic damages was provided by Dr. Maria Tsennykh as part of the complaint.
The centerpiece of CIJA´s contribution to the case was a 132-page expert report on the command-and-control structures of Syria´s government and security-intelligence apparatus authored by CIJA’s Senior Military Analyst. The report drew on the vast array of documents collected by Syrian field investigators since 2011 in order to form a complete contextual understanding of the Regime’s attack on Baba Amr. The court’s opinion extensively cites CIJA’s work in its findings, which established inter alia the role of the Central Crisis Management Cell, the highest national security body in the Syrian Regime, in directing the Regime’s violent response to the uprising in general and in overseeing the Homs Military and Security Committee in particular; the command and control responsibility of Major General Rafiq Shahadah, in coordinating military and intelligence operations in the siege of Baba Amr; the widespread and systematic violence directed against the civilian population as well as those who “tarnish[ed] the image of Syria in the foreign media and international organizations.” In addition to the expert report, CIJA´s assistance included providing access to two former Regime members with insider knowledge of the attacks on Baba Amr as well as over 200 documents.
Links and Media
Selected Court Documents
Amended Memorandum Opinion of US District Court for the District of Columbia
List of Other Evidence and Pleadings
Selected Media Coverage
The Independent, “Marie deserved the truth': Assad regime deliberately targeted and killed journalist Colvin, investigation claims”, 9 April 2018
The Intercept, “Target Journalist. How the Assad Regime Tracked and Killed Marie Colvin for Reporting on War Crimes in Syria”, 9 April 2018
NPR, “Syrian Defector: Assad Forces Targeted, Killed Journalist Marie Colvin”, 10 April 2018
The Times, “Target Journalist: The killing of reporters should be classified as a war crime”, 5 April 2018
The New York Times, “Syrian Forces Aimed to Kill Journalists, U.S. Court Is Told”, 9 April 2018
The New York Times, “Syria Ordered to Pay $302.5 Million to Family of Marie Colvin”, 31 January 2019