The top UN court has ordered Syria to do all it can to prevent torture

By MIKE CORDER
Associated Press

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — The United Nations’ top court has ordered the Syrian government to “take all measures within its powers” to prevent torture. The order Thursday comes at an early stage of a case in which the Netherlands and Canada accuse Damascus of a years-long campaign of torturing its own citizens. The interim order is intended to protect potential victims while the case accusing Syria of breaching the torture convention proceeds through the International Court of Justice, a process likely to take years. Canada and the Netherlands last month called on the court to order the torture ban. Syria boycotted the hearing in October and it remains unclear how it will respond to the world court’s order.