A report released by a group of war crimes prosecutors shows evidence that could prove Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's regime tortured and killed thousands of people imprisoned by the government, CNN reported Monday.
The report is comprised of scores of images of the dead bodies of prisoners allegedly held in the government's custody. Prosecutors say the evidence supports allegations that Assad's regime routinely executed some 11,000 detainees ever since the internal conflict began.
"This is a smoking gun," David Crane, first chief prosecutor of the Special Court for Sierra Leone, told CNN. Crane co-authored the report.
"Any prosecutor would like this kind of evidence- the photos and the process. This is direct evidence of the regime's killing machine."
According to the report, the detainees appeared to have been tortured, undergoing severe beatings and starvation, before being killed.
Experts closely examined a selection of photos of 150 detainees, most of whom were men probably ages 20 to 40. Most of the victims, 62 percent, looked to be emaciated, a severely thin, gaunt appearance most likely caused by starvation, CNN reported.
The bodies were "reminiscent of the pictures of those [who] were found still alive in the Nazi death camps after World War II," Sir Desmond de Silva, another prosecutor who produced the report, told CNN.
"This evidence could underpin a charge of crimes against humanity- without any shadow of a doubt," Silva told CNN's Christiane Amanpour. "Of course, it's not for us to make a decision. All we can do is evaluate the evidence and say this evidence is capable of being accepted by a tribunal as genuine."
In addition to Crane and Silva, the group included a forensic pathologist, a digital imaging expert, an anthropologist and another prosecutor.
The report was given to CNN's Amanpour. CNN reported they cannot confirm the authenticity of the report's photographs and testimonies, but are depending on the team who comprised the report.
Despite the apparent evidence, prosecuting those responsible for the killings will not be easy, CNN reported. Because Syria is not a member of the International Criminal Court, the perpetrators will only be prosecuted if the United Nations Security Council makes a referral.
