Updated

Renowned former war crimes prosecutor Carla Del Ponte has told a Swiss publication that she is resigning from the U.N.'s independent Commission of Inquiry on Syria after a five-year stint, decrying Security Council inaction to hold criminals accountable.

In comments to Blick magazine published Sunday, Del Ponte expressed frustration about the commission and criticized both President Bashar Assad's government and the opposition. She did not immediately respond to a text message seeking comment.

The former prosecutor for the international war crimes tribunals that investigated atrocities in Rwanda and Yugoslavia has repeatedly decried the Security Council's refusal to appoint a similar court for Syria's civil war, now in its seventh year. Permanent member Russia is a key backer of Assad's government.

The commission issued a statement insisting its work "must continue" to help bring perpetrators in Syria to justice.