A/RES/74/169 Situation of human rights in the Syrian Arab Republic hospitals and facilities, and to ensure that the wounded and sick receive, to the maximum extent practicable and with the least possible delay, the medical care required, while also recalling that, under international law, deliberate attacks against hospitals and places where the sick and wounded are collected, provided that they are not targets, and attacks on buildings, materials, medical units, means of transport and individuals using the distinctive emblems of the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949 31 in accordance with international law relate to war crimes, and recalling the applicable rules of international humanitarian law whereby no one should be punished for carrying out medical activities consistent with medical ethics, Expressing grave concern at the indiscriminate use of force by the Syrian regime against civilians, which has caused immense human suffering and fomented the spread of extremism and extremist groups and which demonstrates the continuing failure of the Syrian regime to protect the population and implement the relevant resolutions and decisions of United Nations bodies and has created a safe haven and operating environment for crimes against humanity, Expressing grave concern also at the remaining presence of extremism and violent extremist groups, terrorists and terrorist groups, and strongly condemning all violations and abuses of human rights and violations of international humanitarian law committed in the Syrian Arab Republic by any party to the conflict, in particular so-called ISIL (also known as Da’esh), the Nusrah Front, Al-Qaida-affiliated terrorist groups, militias fighting on behalf of the regime, and other violent extremist groups, Noting with serious concern the observation of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic that non-State armed groups still resort to the use of force against civilians, Reaffirming its condemnation in the strongest possible terms of the use of chemical weapons by anyone under any circumstances, emphasizing that any use of chemical weapons anywhere, at any time, by anyone, under any circumstances is unacceptable and is and would be a violation of international law, and expressing its strong conviction that those individuals responsible for the use of chemical weapons must and should be held accountable, Condemning in the strongest possible terms the fact that chemical weapons have been used since 2012 in the Syrian Arab Republic, including as reported by the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons-United Nations Joint Investigative Mechanism in its reports of 2016 and 2017, 32 concluding that the Syrian Arab Armed Forces were responsible for the attacks which released toxic substances in Talmenes in 2014 and in Sarmin and Qmenas in 2015, that ISIL (also known as Da’esh) used sulfur mustard in Marea in 2015 and in Umm Hawsh in 2016 and that the Syrian Arab Republic was responsible for the release of sarin at Khan Shaykhun in 2017, and accordingly noting with great concern the reports of the fact -finding mission of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons regarding incidents in Ltamenah 33 and Saraqib, 34 as well as the final report regarding the incident involving alleged use of toxic chemicals as a weapon in Duma, 35 which concluded that there were reasonable grounds to believe that the us e of a toxic chemical as a weapon had taken place, and demanding that the perpetrators immediately desist from any further use of chemical weapons, __________________ 31 32 33 34 35 4/14 United Nations, Treaty Series, vol. 75, Nos. 970–973. See S/2016/738/Rev.1, S/2016/888 and S/2017/904. See S/2017/931, annex, and S/2018/620, annex. See S/2018/478, annex. See S/2019/208, annex. 19-22312