On 19 December 2016 the UN General Assembly’s Third Committee passed its fourth annual resolution on the situation in Syria. Resolution 71/203 deplores and condemns the continued widespread and systematic gross violations of human rights and fundamental freedoms and all violations of International Humanitarian Law (IHL) by the Syrian authorities, armed groups and the so-called Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant. The resolution also urges all parties to take all appropriate steps to protect civilians, including members of ethnic, religious and confessional communities, and stresses that the primary responsibility to protect the Syrian population lies with the Syrian authorities.