A/HRC/RES/53/18 United Nations General Assembly Distr.: General 19 July 2023 Original: English Human Rights Council Fifty-third session 19 June–14 July 2023 Agenda item 4 Human rights situations that require the Council’s attention Resolution adopted by the Human Rights Council on 13 July 2023 53/18. Situation of human rights in the Syrian Arab Republic The Human Rights Council, Guided by the principles and purposes of the Charter of the United Nations, Reaffirming its previous resolutions on the Syrian Arab Republic, Reaffirming also its strong commitment to full respect for the sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity of the Syrian Arab Republic, Condemning the grave situation of human rights across the Syrian Arab Republic, and demanding that the Syrian regime meet its responsibility to protect the Syrian population and to respect and protect the human rights of all persons within its jurisdiction, including persons in detention and their families, Recalling the findings of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic, including its most recent report,1 in which it documented continued violations of international human rights law and international humanitarian law, including those involving attacks against civilians and civilian objects, arbitrary arrests, enforced disappearances and deaths in detention due to ill-treatment, including torture or lack of access to medical care, and arbitrary arrests upon return to the Syrian Arab Republic, Noting that gender equality and the condemnation of discrimination and violence against women and girls have been reflected in the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action, the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action and the outcome documents of their review conferences, Noting with deep concern the finding by the Commission of Inquiry that sexual and gender-based violence against women, girls, men and boys has been persistent and underreported in the Syrian Arab Republic since 2011 and continues to be perpetrated, and that the legal framework fails to effectively protect victims, including survivors, and constitutes a barrier to accountability, Recognizing that all women and girls have been disproportionately affected by the crisis and continue to be among the worst affected, and on multiple grounds, including that many women have become the main or sole breadwinners for their families, a situation that is often exacerbated by the enforced disappearance of male members of their families, 1 A/HRC/52/69. GE.23-14115(E)