The
group of mostly women and children were abducted by IS during a massive
July 25 assault on the Druze community in Sweida, in which the
militants killed more than 250 people. They are being held by IS to use
as leverage in negotiations with the Syrian government and its ally
Russia, according to HRW.
"Hostage-taking
is a war crime," the rights group said. "Civilian lives should not be
used as bargaining chips," said its deputy Middle East director Lama
Fakih. Of more than 30 people taken hostage in the July offensive, at
least two have since died. A 19-year-old male student was beheaded and a
video circulated of the killing, which was not released on the
militants' usual channels.
Russia accuses rebels of preparing Idlib chemical attack
Russia
on Saturday said Syrian rebels are preparing a chemical attack in Idlib
province which will be blamed on Damascus and used as a pretext for
Western powers to hit government targets in the war-torn country.
Moscow's
accusation comes after US President Donald Trump's national security
adviser John Bolton this week said Washington will respond "very
strongly" if Syrian President Bashar al-Assad uses chemical weapons in
an offensive to retake Idlib, one of the last rebel held provinces in
the country.
Russian defence
ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said in a statement that the
militant group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham is "preparing another provocation of
the 'use of chemical weapons' by Syrian government forces against the
peaceful population of the Idlib province."
He
said the group delivered "eight chlorine tanks" to Jisr al-Shughur town
in order to "stage" the attack and that these were later taken to a
village eight kilometres (5 miles) away.
The
statement also said a group of militants "trained in handling poisonous
substances under the supervision of specialists from the private
British military company 'Oliva'" arrived in the town a day earlier.
"The militants have the task of simulating the rescue of the victims of
the chemical weapons attack dressed in the clothes of the famous 'White
Helmets'," it said.
Konashenkov
accused British special services of being "actively involved" in the
"provocation" which will "serve as another reason for the US, the UK and
France to hit Syrian government targets with air strikes."
In
April, the US, France and Britain launched joint missile strikes on
Syrian targets in response to an alleged chemical weapons attack in the
town of Douma that left scores dead.Russian
stuck by its ally Syria and angrily insisted the Douma attack was
staged by the White Helmets volunteer rescue service. In Jerusalem on
Wednesday, Bolton said Washington was "concerned about the possibility
that Assad may use chemical weapons again."
"Just
so there's no confusion here, if the Syrian regime uses chemical
weapons we will respond very strongly and they really ought to think
about this a long time," Bolton said.
Speculation
is increasing that there could be a Russian-backed government assault
on Idlib, one of the so-called "de-escalation" zones set up as a result
of talks by Russia, Turkey and Iran last year. On a visit to Moscow on
Friday, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu warned Russia that
seeking a military solution in Idlib would be a "catastrophe" before
meeting President Vladimir Putin. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov
said the situation in Idlib is "multi-faceted" and called for
separating out "the healthy opposition from terrorist structures."
Damascus
still holds the southeastern tip of Idlib, a strategically important
province adjacent to Latakia on the Mediterranean coast that is home to
Assad's clan.
More than 350,000
people have been killed and millions displaced since Syria's war started
in 2011 with the brutal repression of anti-government protests.
