Prof. Fionnuala Ní Aoláin Holds Press Conference in Geneva To Report on Her Recent Visit to Syria

In her role as U.N. Special Rapporteur on the protection of rights while countering terrorism, Prof. Fionnuala Ní Aoláin held a press conference on Friday in Geneva, Switzerland, to report on her end-of-mandate visit to Syria where she called attention to the lingering “mass arbitrary detention” in Syria's infamous al-Hol camp and others like it that she saw during her trip to the region last week—a visit that was billed as the first visit of its kind by an independent human rights expert. The Associated Press reported Ní Aoláin saying that "conditions were 'dire' in al-Hol, which she said was currently home to more than 49,000 people. She expressed concerns about security, access to health care, and 'scarcity of water' in camps where temperatures rose to 50 degrees Celsius (122 Fahrenheit) and tents were providing shelter."

Multiple national and international media sources covered the press conference.