ANNEX C PERPETRATOR IDENTIFICATION Identifying parties who may be implicated in human rights abuses in the Syrian context is particularly challenging. This is partly because of the large number of groups that are involved in the conflict, including parties affiliated with the government, the Free Syrian Army, and jihadist groups. Questions to assist with perpetrator identification In order to ascertain the identity of perpetrators, after hearing the respondent’s initial narrative statement pertaining to any incidents of human rights violations, an interviewer may wish to ask questions focusing on:  The respondent’s impression of whether the alleged perpetrator belonged to a particular armed group—if the respondent has an opinion, what is the basis of that opinion? Did the perpetrators say or do anything that suggested a particular affiliation? Did the perpetrators otherwise identify themself in any way?  How the perpetrators were dressed—where they wearing a certain type of uniform? If so, describe the uniform, including any insignia or logos. (official uniforms strongly indicate Syrian Armed Forces) (olive/khaki uniforms may be SAA or Syrian Arab Air Force; white or blue uniforms may be Syrian Arab Navy; khaki-grey or blue-grey may be Syrian Arab Defense Force; black uniforms point to Hezbollah or Jabhat al Nusra)  Were they wearing camouflage? (Many groups wear camouflage, including the SAA, Syrian Arab Air Force, Syrian Arab Defense Force, Hezbollah, NDF)  Were fighters dressed both in camouflage and civilian clothing? (National Defense Forces, Free Syrian Army, Farouq Brigades, Harakat Ahrar Al Sham Al Islamiyya)  What color was the clothing they wore? (black civilian clothing may indicate Shabiha)  Did they have any identifying insignia? (a red ribbon on the shoulder is a signal of rank within the official military police)  Were they wearing hats/berets/headbands? If so, was there writing on the headpiece? (red beret might indicate Hezbollah; a red or green headband may indicate FSA; a black headband with white writing might indicate Jabhat al Nusra or the Farouq Brigades; a kuffa turban may point to the Farouq Brigades)  Were there flags? If so, describe (see below).  Could you identify the language/dialect? Is it a local group or foreign? (Farsi may point to groups from Iran, while Kurdish points to PYD/KSC)  Did the carry or use any weapons? If so, what kind? (higher-tech weapons, i.e., small arms and tanks might indicate SAA, while small arms and lighter weapons might indicate Shabiha)  Did shots come from far away? (flush out whether there were snipers—reports indicate the IRGC Ground Forces are supplying snipers and PFLP has been using snipers to kill rebel fighters in the camp) 27