CIJA Statement on the Syria Disinformation Campaign
بالعربية
The Commission for International Justice and Accountability (CIJA) is proud to report that it has concluded a probe into the disinformation networks which have increasingly threatened to derail fragile Syria accountability efforts through misinformation, lies and revisionism.
CIJA’s inquiry uncovered the extraordinary degrees of deception these disinformation networks are willing to go to in order to achieve their goal of whitewashing the egregious crimes committed by the regime of Bashar al-Assad. It also exposed a surprising array of individuals who have recklessly served to amplify certain of the core allegations of the disinformation network – persons who are not themselves assessed by CIJA as being apologists for the Assad regime, and are in some instances working in the field of international criminal and humanitarian law.
Amongst other things, the CIJA inquiry revealed that the disinformation networks:
admit privately to fabricating sources and information in order to create the impression of well-researched and evidence-based reports;
coordinate their work with, and take instructions from, Russian diplomats and other representatives of the Russian state;
are engaged in a tightly controlled and orchestrated campaign to denigrate the findings of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), with proactive assistance from Hague-based lawyers providing pro bono counsel on how to wage lawfare against the increasingly damning findings of the OPCW with respect to Syrian regime chemical attacks; and
are prepared to ask apparent agents of foreign states to support their research efforts, and even to attack their foes.
CIJA was only the latest target of this disinformation campaign. Over the last five years, Russia and various proxies in the west have pursued a vicious disinformation war against individuals and groups undertaking humanitarian as well as accountability efforts in Syria. The most prominent targets of this campaign have been the Syrian White Helmets, Mayday Rescue and the OPCW.
In November 2020, CIJA was advised implicitly by the so-called Working Group on Syria, Propaganda and Media – a leading pro-Moscow and pro-Damascus disinformation network – that CIJA and its Executive Director would be the next targets of its long-running disinformation campaign. In response, CIJA launched its probe, the primary objective of which was to protect the security of CIJA’s witnesses, sensitive sources, its personnel and their families.
The said inquiry was undertaken by lawful means during the period 01 December 2020 to 14 March 2021.
CIJA’s major security concerns were confirmed when a former senior CIJA consultant disclosed to the Working Group and its allies highly sensitive details regarding the extended families – including the children – of CIJA personnel, as well as the names of myriad operational and administrative staff. From a CIJA perspective, this discovery alone demanded the initiation of an inquiry.
The risks that CIJA personnel face are real, not perceived. Documents originating from Syrian security intelligence in the possession of CIJA and other information show that Damascus and states with known Assad sympathies are interested in locating CIJA personnel and facilities. In response to such threats, the CIJA is necessarily committed to protecting by all lawful means its witnesses, sources, personnel, mandate and reputation. This effort requires CIJA to expose those who persist in doing the unconscionable bidding of Moscow, Damascus and their allies in Syria, whether consciously or recklessly. CIJA is obliged morally and ethically to proceed in solidarity with the victims of the Working Group and its partners’ disinformation, including the White Helmets, Mayday Rescue, the OPCW, and James Le Mesurier, whom many of us knew as a friend.
Over the decade of conflict in Syria, CIJA has helped extract to safety activists who found themselves in harm’s way inside Syria. CIJA has done so quietly and without need for recognition. The rising influence of disinformation networks and their impact on Syrian victims and survivors require a strong and unified response by those who stand for human rights and accountability. The information gathered during this probe will be provided to relevant authorities such that appropriate measures can be taken.
CIJA’s solidarity with those who undertake crucial humanitarian, accountability and criminal justice work in Syria, and its determination to fight disinformation networks and their enablers, is now a matter of public record.
About the CIJA
CIJA has been conducting criminal investigations in Syria since 2011. While for security reasons we kept a lower public profile than is usual for an NGO, our work has had high impact where it matters the most: securing evidence and ensuring that this material supports the efforts of western law enforcement to hold perpetrators accountable. Thus far, CIJA has collected over one million pages of Syrian regime documentation and it is currently supporting thirty-two law enforcement agencies from over a dozen democratic countries. CIJA’s evidence and testimony have been used in five completed trials pertaining to both Syrian regime and Islamic State criminality. Additionally, CIJA is currently assisting fifteen ongoing investigations by law enforcement agencies. Overall, since 2016 CIJA has responded to requests for assistance from national authorities pertaining to over 2,000 suspects. For more about CIJA’s work go to www.cijaonline.org
26 March 2021