The Syrian Coalition called on the UN General Assembly to convene under the “Uniting for Peace” resolution to address the dire humanitarian situation in Syria; take measures to ensure full respect for the ceasefire; and adopt a resolution that would put an end to the tragedy unfolding in Syria.
In a letter to the UN Security Council, the Coalition stressed the need for a UN General Assembly resolution that ensures the Syrian people’s legitimate aspirations for freedom and justice are met; a political transition process is put in place; sieges are lifted; humanitarian access to all civilians in need is granted; and the 6-year-long suffering of the Syrian people is stopped.
The letter was also sent to the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and the Arab League to highlight the continued truce violations by the Assad regime and Russia forces as well as Russia’s failure in its role as a an unbiased guarantor of the ceasefire agreement.
The United Nations General Assembly resolution 377 (1950), also called the “Uniting for Peace” resolution, stated that “in any cases where the Security Council…fails to act as required to maintain international peace and security, the General Assembly shall consider the matter immediately and may issue any recommendations it deems necessary in order to restore international peace and security.”
The Syrian Coalition’s legal committee emphasized that Russia has failed to honor the pledges it made to ensure the cease-fire in Syria is respected, detainees in the prisons of the Assad regime are released, and sieges are lifted.
The Syrian Network for Human Rights (SNHR) said it has recorded at least 358 truce violations by regime forces and their allies in the period between December 30, 2016 and February 1, 2017. The majority of violations took the form of aerial and artillery bombardment as well as barrel bomb attacks on the rebel-held areas. These violations claimed the lives of nearly 100 people, including 25 children and 14 women, targeting 79 vital civilian centers.
The Coalition called upon the UN General Assembly to adopt a resolution to refer perpetrators of war crimes in Syria to the International Criminal Court, mainly the Assad regime, Russia, and the allied Iranian-backed foreign militias. The Coalition underscored the need to hold them accountable for their crimes and to conduct an investigation into the war crimes and crimes against humanity they continue to commit in Syria.
The Coalition also called on the UN General Assembly to adopt a resolution banning the sale and supply of all types of weapons to the Assad regime in order to put an end to the continuing violence, murder, and crimes being committed by its forces and militias against civilians in Syria.
Moreover, the Coalition called for the suspension of the membership of the Assad regime in the United Nations and the expulsion of its ambassador to the United Nations. It also called for handing over the seat of the Syrian Arab Republic in the UN to the Coalition after the UN General Assembly, the Arab League, the Gulf Cooperation Council, and the Friends of Syria Group recognized it as the legitimate sole representative of the Syrian people. (Source: Syrian Coalition’s Media Department)
