Syrian war death toll surpasses 190,000 in 3 years

NEW YORK, Aug. 21 (UPI) -- The United Nations released a report on Friday that documents more than 190,000 deaths killed during Syria's three-year civil war.

According to the U.N. Human Rights Office, 191,369 people were killed in Syria between March 2011 and the end of April 2014.

The statistical analysts who compiled the report used data sets from five different sources, and required three points of information for each recorded death: the victim's name, and the date and location of death. Using those guidelines, the analysts acknowledged that "51,953 reported killings containing insufficient information were excluded from the analysis."

Therefore, U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay said Friday, the 191,369 deaths documented in the report "is probably an underestimate of the real total number of people killed during the first three years of this murderous conflict."

Pillay expressed frustration that the Syrian conflict seems to have "dropped off the international radar" with the shift of focus to other armed conflicts.

"It is scandalous that the predicament of the injured, displaced, the detained, and the relatives of all those who have been killed or are missing is no longer attracting much attention, despite the enormity of their suffering. ...

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"The killers, destroyers and torturers in Syria have been empowered and emboldened by the international paralysis."

The Syrian Opposition Coalition, quoting Pillay's outrage about the ongoing war, urged action, tweeting: "The world must partner with the Free Syrian Army, who protect innocent Syrians from Assad and fight ISIS from culture of impunity."