Syria faces allegations at the UN top court that it maintains a “pervasive” system of torture that has killed tens of thousands of people. The case at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) marks the first time Damascus has faced international judges over the brutal civil war that started in 2011. Victims have endured “unimaginable physical and mental pain and suffering” from “abhorrent treatment in detention, inhumane conditions of detention, and sexual and gender-based violence,” the case brought by the Netherlands and Canada alleges.
