2023 has been another tragic year for Syrian civilians, who were killed, injured, displaced, detained and abducted in alarming numbers, and today face the danger of regional spillover, according to Geir Pedersen, Special Envoy of the UN Secretary-General for Syria. “There is an urgent need for maximum restraint by all actors, Syrian and non-Syrian,” and a “sustained de-escalation in and on Syria, towards a nationwide ceasefire.”
“As 2023 comes to a close, the Syrian political process remains frustratingly blocked, and the Syrian people are suffering greatly,” said Robert Wood, United States Alternative Representative to the United Nations:
“For more than 12 years, the Assad regime has waged a brutal war against the Syrian people. On top of that, Syrians are still reeling from the devastating impacts of February’s earthquakes. Yet rather than engage in a political process, in the last few months, the Assad regime has stepped up its attacks on its own people in the northwest of Syria.”
“We all know the responsibility for this war lies at the feet of the Assad regime,” said Ambassador Wood. In late December, “the General Assembly voted on a U.S.-co-facilitated resolution on the human rights situation in Syria that reminded the world of the abuses the regime wants us to forget: the use of chemical weapons, extrajudicial killings, torture and other ill-treatment, unjust detentions, enforced disappearances, and gender-based violence.”
“We are alarmed by the reports that violence has reached its worst level since 2019. The hundreds of civilian deaths caused by the regime and Russian offensive in Idlib are deeply concerning,” he said. “The destruction they have caused to infrastructure and the threats they pose to humanitarian operations put hundreds of thousands of people at risk during the cold winter months.”
“We join the majority of UN Member States in reiterating the call for the Syrian regime to immediately release all those arbitrarily held and to provide information about the tens of thousands who are missing,” said Ambassador Wood. At the same time, “we share … concerns about regional spillover.”
“We must persevere and remain committed to achieving a Syrian-focused and Syrian-led solution to the conflict in line with Resolution 2254, the only viable roadmap for a lasting solution to the conflict,” he said.
“The Syrian people have been waiting far too long,” said Ambassador Wood. “[They] deserve the future for which they have fought so hard, including respect for their human rights and fundamental freedoms.”
