“The situation of human rights in the Syrian Arab Republic has continued to deteriorate,” the UN Commission of Inquiry on Syria stated in its latest report, which was released in Geneva.

“Since 15 July 2012, there has been an escalation in the armed conflict between Government forces and anti-Government armed groups. The conflict has become increasingly sectarian, with the conduct of the parties becoming significantly more radicalized and militarized.”

The Commission – which comprises Paulo Sergio Pinheiro, Karen AbuZayd, Carla del Ponte and Vitit Muntarbhorn – has been mandated by the Geneva-based Human Rights Council to investigate and record all violations of international human rights law in Syria, where possibly up to 70,000 people, mostly civilians, have been killed since the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad began in March 2011.

“There is a need to act urgently to ensure that there is justice for the crimes committed,” the panel stated in its report.

“By collecting first-hand information and documenting incidents, the Commission is laying the foundation for accountability, whether at the national, regional or international levels. In March 2013, a confidential list of individuals and units believed to be responsible for crimes will be submitted to the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights,” it said.

Although the Government has yet to allow the Commission to undertake investigations inside Syria, the 445 interviews conducted from 15 July 2012 to 15 January 2013 found that large parts of the country are scenes of “continuous combat, involving more brutal tactics and new military capabilities on all sides,” according to a news release on the report.

“The war has taken on sectarian overtones, permeated by opportunistic criminality, and aggravated by the presence of foreign fighters and extremist groups.”

According to the report, Government forces and affiliated militia committed the crimes against humanity of murder, torture, rape, enforced disappearance and other inhumane acts. War crimes and gross violations of international human rights and humanitarian law – including arbitrary arrest and detention, unlawful attack, attacking protected objects, and pillaging and destruction of property – were also committed.

Anti-Government armed groups have committed war crimes, including murder, torture, hostage-taking and attacking protected objects, the report continued. They continue to endanger the civilian population by positioning military objectives inside civilian areas. Where armed groups carried out bombings in predominantly civilian areas, it had the effect of spreading terror and amounted to the war crime of attacking civilians.

“The violations and abuses committed by anti-Government armed groups did not, however, reach the intensity and scale of those committed by Government forces and affiliated militia,” the panel added.

In addition, Government forces, affiliated militias and anti-Government armed groups have violated the rights of children. Incidents of children being killed, tortured and raped by pro-Government forces were recorded. Children under the age of 15 have actively participated – including as fighters – in hostilities as part of some of the anti-Government armed groups.

“Ensuring the accountability of all parties for crimes committed is imperative,” stated the Commission, which outlined a series of detailed recommendations – to the Syrian Government, anti-Government armed groups, the international community, the Human Rights Council and the Security Council – and emphasized the need to counter a “growing culture of impunity,” including through referral to the International Criminal Court (ICC).

The Commission highlighted the urgent need for the parties to the conflict to commit to a political settlement to end the violence, which has left some four million people in Syria, including at least two million internally displaced persons (IDPs), in need of humanitarian aid.

UN humanitarian agencies and their partners are reaching more and more people inside the country with assistance. Over the weekend, an inter-agency mission delivered a first batch of critical relief items to 6,000 IDPs in Karameh in north-western Idlib province, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reported.

“This joint relief convoy, involving eight UN agencies, demonstrates that outreach is possible from inside Syria,” said Radhouane Nouicer, the Regional Humanitarian Coordinator for Syria. “It encourages us to continue to increase our efforts to reach more people in need across the country.”

Separately, the UN also delivered a significant quantity of medical supplies to Aleppo and much-needed winter items and hygiene kits to Hama, where recent fighting resulted in large-scale displacement in rural areas.

In the conclusions on Syria of the Foreign Affairs Council meeting in Luxembourg it is argued that the European Union strongly condemns the brutal violence and massacres of civilians, many of them children and women, such as in the town of Houla on 26 May, and in the villages of Qubair and Maarzaf in Hama province on 6 June. It is also appalled by reports on the use of children as human shields. The EU welcomes the UN Human Rights Council resolution adopted on 1 June, condemning the deteriorating human rights situation in Syria and the horrific killings in Houla. It urges the Syrian regime to end immediately the killing of civilians, withdraw the Syrian army from besieged towns and cities and to allow for a peaceful transition for the sake of the country. President Assad has no place in the future of Syria. The EU looks forward to the outcome of the investigation by the Independent Commission of Inquiry on Syria into the massacre in Houla. The EU urges the Syrian authorities to fully and immediately cooperate with the Commission. The EU recalls that all those responsible for widespread, systematic and gross human rights violations must be held accountable.

“The EU recalls its full support to Joint UN- League of Arab States Special Envoy Kofi Annan’s mission and his six-point plan. It welcomes the full deployment of the United Nations Supervision Mission in Syria (UNSMIS), but regrets that the escalation of violence led to the suspension of UNSMIS observation activities on 16 June. It recalls that the Syrian authorities are responsible for ensuring the security and safety of the mission and for facilitating the resumption of the unobstructed work of the mission. It strongly condemns the attacks against UN monitors.

The EU condemns all actions aimed at obstructing the implementation of Annan’s six point plan. It reiterates that the main responsibility for the ceasefire and the implementation of the plan lies with the Syrian authorities. The EU warns against further militarisation of the conflict and sectarian violence which will bring enormous suffering to Syria and risks having a tragic impact on the region. The EU calls on all parties to refrain from using violence and in particular on the regime to fully implement the Annan plan. The EU recalls that the six-point plan is not an open-ended offer.

The European Union condemns the unacceptable shooting down by Syria of a Turkish military plane on 22 June. It offers its sympathies to the families of the airmen involved, and commends Turkey’s measured and responsible initial reaction. The European Union notes that this is a matter which needs to be investigated thoroughly and urgently. It calls on Syria to cooperate fully with Turkey and allow full access for an immediate investigation, and for the international community to give its support to such efforts. The European Union urges Syria to ensure that it complies by international standards and obligations.

The EU calls on all the States concerned, and in particular the Members of the UN Security Council, to continue to support Kofi Annan and use all their influence to ensure that UNSC resolutions 2042 and 2043 are fully implemented. The EU calls for united action by the UNSC to add more robust and effective pressure, including the adoption of comprehensive sanctions under Chapter VII. In this respect, it welcomes Annan’s efforts to work with key international partners exercising a positive influence in the region to move the political process forward. The EU takes note of the discussion on Syria during the EU-Russia Summit on 3-4 June and reiterates the importance of Russia’s engagement in support of a peaceful political process which must lead to a democratic transition.

The EU looks forward to the next meeting of the Friends of the Syrian People Group that will be held in Paris on 6 July to maintain international pressure on the Syrian regime and support Annan’s six- point plan.

The European Union remains committed to the Syrian people’s struggle for freedom, dignity, democracy and human rights. The EU continues to urge the Syrian National Council and other opposition groups to put aside their differences and to agree on a set of shared principles and start working towards an inclusive, orderly and peaceful transition in Syria. A stronger and more united opposition that represents a credible alternative for all Syrians is essential. The EU calls on all opposition groups to actively and fully support the implementation of the Annan plan.

The EU welcomes the outcome of the third Syria Humanitarian Forum held on 5 June. The EU calls on the Syrian authorities to fully cooperate and ensure the rapid implementation of the humanitarian response plan, including immediately allowing full unhindered and safe access to humanitarian workers and delivery of humanitarian aid. The EU fully supports the humanitarian initiative to urgently evacuate non-combatants and the wounded from Homs and calls on all parties to allow the evacuation of children, women, elderly and injured from conflict zones. The EU will continue to support the efforts made by neighbouring countries to host Syrian refugees who fled violence in Syria.

The EU approved today the designation of new persons and entities to be subject to restrictive measures. The EU will continue its policy of imposing additional measures targeting the regime, not the civilian population, as long as repression continues. The EU will also continue to urge the international community to join its efforts, in taking steps to apply and enforce restrictive measures on the Syrian regime and its supporters. In this context, the EU welcomes the second meeting of the International Working Group on Sanctions which was held in Washington on 6 June. It calls on all Syrians to dissociate themselves from the repressive policy of the regime in order to facilitate a political transition.”

Therefore, the Commission has been pushing for deeper economic integration as one of the remedies to the current crisis. This new step in European integration would complement the monetary union. In this context, the Commission is putting forward the concept of a banking union.

The European banking union is not a new legal instrument yet. It is a political vision for more EU integration, which will build on recent major steps to strengthen the regulation of the banking sector and go further.

The concept of a banking union was put forward by President Barroso at the last informal European Council, which took place on 23 May. It has been attracting a lot of attention in the political debate since this meeting and ranks high on the agenda of the next European summit.

The full benefits from deepening the economic and monetary union and from creating the banking union could only be reaped by the development of the fiscal union. The full benefits from deepening the economic and monetary union and from creating the banking union could however only be reaped by the development of the fiscal union.The full benefits from deepening the economic and monetary union and from creating the banking union could however only be reaped by the development of the fiscal union.

The President of the European Council will present a report in close collaboration with the President of the European Commission, the Chair of the Eurogroup and the President of the European Central Bank to the next European Council (28-29 June). In the context of the preparation of this report, the main building blocks towards a deeper economic and monetary integration including the banking union and the fiscal union will be extensively discussed as well as the working methods.

Once this vision is agreed at political level, the Commission will propose the necessary measures for implementation. The Commission could make proposals as early as Autumn 2012. And it also wants the Council and EP to accelerate the decision-making process on key legislation already in the pipeline.

“The priority now is to make the second programme work. This is our collective task: supporting the Greek authorities and the Greek people. To that end, the Commission is already taking concrete steps: Together with those Commissioners most closely involved, I have had very concrete talks with Prime Minister Papademos and his team about getting key growth-enhancing decisions taken immediately. As you will have seen from my letter, we have agreed to concentrate on a number of key priorities. Improving youth employment, promoting a more business-friendly environment, providing liquidity to SMEs, sweeping away barriers to the absorption of structural funds.

“These are all areas where we can make real progress in weeks, not months or years. The Commission Task Force under Horst Reichenbach is currently on the ground discussing how to put these measures into practice with the Greek government.

“And finally, just yesterday I held a meeting with President Hoyer of the EIB, the European Investment Bank, to examine how our support for Greece can be made more effective. To cement this approach, I intend, in the coming weeks, to present, together with Vice President Rehn, a Communication on growth and jobs for Greece, taking stock of the progress that has been made and setting out the top priorities for the future. As I set out in the Roadmap to Stability and Growth, finding a lasting solution to the problems in Greece is an essential prerequisite for stability. Without stability there is no confidence. And without confidence we will not get growth and jobs…”

Barroso writes: “… the Commission is ready to support the Greek authorities in taking decisions that can restore confidence and begin the process of revitalising the Greek economy… there are a variety of steps that should be taken right away to improve the business environment; to support small businesses and young people; and to remove the bottlenecks in public administration and the financial system that are preventing the structural funds from flowing to where they are needed, holding back growth and job creation.

The European Commission has already paid more than EUR 8 billion of the EUR 20 billion allocated to Greece since 2007 through the EU structural funds. We are keen to help your authorities target the remaining funds on stimulating growth and competitiveness. For now, there is no shortage of funds but as we discussed there are still too many open questions and administrative hurdles to be overcome before the available funds can reach the real economy.

In priority areas we need to identify where the bottlenecks are and decide on how to remove them within a clear timeframe. This often has to be done top down, which is why I am prepared to work in partnership with you to get things moving…”