[su_quote]I have said before that we have collectively failed the people of Syria. The Security Council has not exercised its preeminent responsibility with regard to the maintenance of international peace and security…History will not easily absolve us, but this failure compels us to do even more to offer the people of Aleppo our solidarity at this moment,” – Secretary General Ban Ki-moon[/su_quote]
Such a crystallizing statement from the outgoing Secretary General of the United Nations (UN). The international community has once again failed the people of Syria.
It is appalling that after five years of conflict and nearly a half a million lives lost, the international community is still unable to act to stop ongoing mass atrocities in Syria.
After negotiating a ceasefire and evacuation plan for civilians and rebels in Aleppo, the ceasefire collapsed in less than a day, leaving thousands of citizens at risk of government air strikes, summary executions, and arbitrary detentions.
Commenting on the breakdown of the ceasefire, the UN’s High Commissioner for Human Rights, Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein said, “While the reasons for the breakdown in the ceasefire are disputed, the resumption of extremely heavy bombardment by the Syrian Government forces and their allies on an area packed with civilians is almost certainly a violation of international law and most likely constitutes war crimes.”
Civilians face great uncertainty around the failed evacuation plan, and will likely be distrustful of future plans as failed attempts may put civilians at greater risk.
Aref Al-Aref, a medic operating in Aleppo, spoke to CNN and said, “People were hopeful that they were leaving this hell. But it was a false hope…We are now worried about leaving the house. If the regime decides to launch an air raid, a massacre will take place right away. The area we are left in is too small.”
During yesterday’s emergency UN Security Council session on the situation in Syria, there was a heated exchange between the US Ambassador to the UN and the Russian Ambassador. US Ambassador to the UN questioned the Syrian and Russian governments’ actions asking, “Are you truly incapable of shame?”
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Given the tone of the exchange, it is clear no progress is being made by the international community to end the violence in Syria. And with Russia’s position as a permanent-five member of the Security Council, it is unlikely that any conversation surrounding a negotiated peace will end with the Assad regime losing any power; making negotiations with rebels almost a non-starter.
If the Syrian government is able to fully take control of Aleppo, the conflict there might end, but the Syrian crisis is far from over. After five years of intense fighting, and heavy bombing campaigns, whole cities have been completely decimated, over 12 million Syrians have fled their homes (more than half the pre-war population), and hundreds of thousands have lost their lives.
A number of attempts to negotiate a peace have failed, and with so many fighting factions, all with different goals, and limited international political will to bring peace to Syria, it is unlikely the country will be at peace anytime soon. Without peace, the millions of Syrians who have fled their homes will not be able to return home; further adding to the world’s growing challenge of dealing with protracted refugee crises.
If the international community continues to fail to deal with the mass atrocities occurring in Syria, governments must be willing to welcome Syrian refugees fleeing the horrors the world isn’t willing to stop.
Jewish World Watch stands in solidarity with the victims of ongoing atrocities in Syria, and we will continue to raise our voices and advocate for an end to the mass atrocities being perpetrated, and to hold the perpetrators accountable for their crimes. If we fail to act and we fail to bring perpetrators to justice, we are not only dooming the Syrian people, we are also emboldening other actors who may commit atrocities in the future.