Special Envoy for Syria Geir Pedersen is engaging with all parties who have a stake in the political future of the country “on the way forward” towards a peaceful and Syrian-led transition, the UN chief António Guterres said on Wednesday. The Secretary-General stressed there were clear “signs of hope” for the...
Mr. Guterres was speaking on Wednesday to reporters in Pretoria, South Africa, where he met with Government officials in connection with the country’s presidency of the G20 group of industrial nations. ‘Signs of hope’ “As we speak, we are witnessing the reshaping of the Middle East, with the changes in...
As the fighting intensified, the UN never stopped working behind the scenes to bring about a political solution that would deliver dignity, freedom and justice for the Syrian people. Here are some of the key developments where the UN has played a significant role towards a just peace in Syria....
“Syria is now at a crossroads with great opportunities for us, but also with grave risks. And we need really to look at both,” said Geir Pedersen, UN Special Envoy for Syria. “We know that, of course, HTS is now the dominant group in control of Damascus, but it’s important...
The historic shift of power in Syria at the weekend has added yet another layer of complexity to the Middle East crisis, with hostilities ongoing in Gaza, violence undiminished in the occupied West Bank and a fragile ceasefire underway in Lebanon. A Security Council meeting is expected on the crisis...
“We will respond wherever, whenever, however we can to support people in need, including reception centres – food, water, fuel, tents, blankets,” said Tom Fletcher, Emergency Relief Coordinator and head of the UN aid coordination office, OCHA. The dramatic development in the Syrian capital follows a lightning advance by armed...
“The UN is strategically reducing its footprint by relocating non-critical staff outside the country… amid the evolving circumstances,” Adam Abdelmoula said in a statement issued by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, known as OCHA. At the same time, the UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator stressed that...
Aid has continued to flow from Türkiye across three border crossings into the embattled northwest and the UN World Food Programme (WFP) said that it had opened community kitchens in Aleppo and Hama – cities now reportedly occupied by HTS fighters. In neighbouring Lebanon, meanwhile, senior UN aid official Edem...
Renewed fighting last week led by the terrorist group Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and other armed factions has engulfed parts of Aleppo, Idlib and Hama, destabilising frontlines that had remained unchanged since 2020. UN human rights office (OHCHR) spokesperson Jeremy Laurence told reporters in Geneva of “a number of extremely...
The alarm comes amid a sharp escalation in fighting in the Aleppo Governorate, spreading to parts of Idleb and Hama governorates and leaving the situation volatile and unpredictable. In a statement on Sunday, UN Special Envoy for Syria Geir O. Pedersen expressed grave concerns over the dramatic shift in frontlines,...
A Syrian Arab Red Crescent (SARC) volunteer was among multiple civilians killed in the incident, OCHA said in a news release. The attack also damaged several SARC ambulances and other humanitarian objects and left two bridges impassable. “As a result, all humanitarian operations at border crossings [between Syria and Lebanon]...
The trucks are carrying food and nutrition supplies for about 12,500 people in the striken camp, and the agency said it was determined to provide the life-saving aid “safely and quickly”, said UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric, briefing journalists in New York. “WFP underscores that the Adre corridor is a vital...