U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk said the extent of atrocities committed in Syria is hard to believe and said transitional justice is "crucial" after the overthrow of Syrian President Bashar Assad.

U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk called on Wednesday for a Syrian national reconciliation process to ensure justice for crimes committed over the past five decades of iron-fisted rule by the Assad family.

The UN rights chief calls for sanctions relief as he visits Syria for the first time::::Damascus, Syria ::Volker Turk, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights"The people of Syria need every ounce of help they can get to rebuild a country that works for all Syrians.

United Nations rights chief Volker Turk on Wednesday said transitional justice was "crucial" for Syria after the fall of Bashar al-Assad, during the first-ever visit by someone in his post to the country.

United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk arrived in Syria's capital, Damascus, on Tuesday for the first ever visit of the global body's rights chief to the country.