Monsieur Le President,
Membres du Conseil de Sécurité ,
Since the fall of the former Assad government on 8 December 2024, this Security Council has been regularly briefed on Israeli violations of the 1974 Disengagement of Forces Agreement between Israel and Syria, as you [will ] hear from Under Secretary General for Peace Operations Jean-Pierre LaCroix. The Secretary-General has been clear in his condemnation of all actions that are inconsistent with the Agreement.
There have been hundreds of reported Israeli airstrikes across Syria since 8 December of last year, in the southwest, the Syrian coast, northeastern Syria, Damascus, Hama, and Homs. The IDF has publicly confirmed it has built multiple positions in the area of separation on the Golan. Israeli officials have also spoken about Israel’s intentions to stay in Syria “for the foreseeable future”. Such facts on the ground are not easily reversed. They do threaten Syria’s fragile political transition.
Most recently, as conveyed to this Council by the Syrian Permanent Mission on 7 April, at dawn on 3 April, there were reports that Israel carried out multiple airstrikes across Syria, including in Damascus, the Hama Military Airport, and the T4 military airport in Homs. Israeli simultaneous attacks in Daraa reportedly resulted in nine civilian casualties.
The Syrian interim authorities condemned these attacks, qualifying them as “a blatant violation of international law and Syrian sovereignty” and “an attempt to destabilize Syria”. Let me also recall earlier indications by the Damascus authorities, as had been published in numerous media outlets, of not presenting threats to its neighbours and seeking peace on their borders. The Israeli Defense Minister was quoted on 3 April as qualifying the recent airstrikes in Syria as “a warning for the future”, as he added that Israel would “not allow Syria to become a threat” to Israel’s security interests.
Considering these developments, let me recall this Council’s presidential statement of 14 March which reaffirmed strong commitment to the sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity of Syria and called on all States to respect these principles and to refrain from any action or interference that may further destabilize Syria.
This Council’s commitment to Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity grows in importance by the day. Syria’s opportunity to stabilize after 14 years of conflict must be supported and protected, for Syrians and for Israelis. This is the only way regional peace and security can be realized.
Mr. President,
Let me conclude by recalling the statement made by Special Envoy Pedersen on 3 April, that “such [Israeli] actions undermine efforts to build a new Syria at peace with itself and the region and destabilize Syria at a sensitive time”. Syria is at a crossroads and deserves a chance to continue to work towards an inclusive political transition, where the Syrian people can overcome the conflict, revive their economy, realize their legitimate aspirations, and contribute to regional stability. Furthermore, short-term and tactical security actions and gains should not derail prospects for peace agreement between the two neighbors and long-term stability at their internationally recognized border.
Je vous remercie.
Recent military actions by Israel are undermining Syria’s political transition and the chances of a new security pact between the two countries, a senior UN official told the Security Council on Thursday.
The conflict in Sudan has become one of the worst humanitarian crises of the 21st century, leaving millions of women, children and displaced families suffering from violence, food insecurity and the collapse of essential services.
The United Nations is ramping up its response to Myanmar’s devastating earthquake, calling for increased funding and an immediate ceasefire to ensure more aid reaches those in desperate need.
As the brutal war in Sudan nears the two-year mark, thousands of people continue to flee into neighbouring countries, including Chad, UN refugee agency chief Filippo Grandi said on Wednesday.
In Gaza, ongoing Israeli military operations and the aid blockade have continued to add to daily fears and hardships being faced by those about to give birth in the devastated enclave.
Hunger in South Sudan’s northeast has reached a critical tipping point, with nearly 7.7 million people facing severe food insecurity as conflict escalates, the UN’s emergency food relief agency warned on Wednesday.
More than three years on from the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, Ukrainian civilians continue to face the devastating consequences of war, with March 2025 proving to be another deadly month.
Six schools run by the UN Palestine refugee agency (UNRWA) in East Jerusalem have been issued “illegal closure orders” after being forcibly entered by Israeli security forces, according to the agency’s head Philippe Lazzarini.
Nearly 13 million people in Ukraine urgently need humanitarian aid as displacement, psychological trauma and the destruction of essential services continues to take a devastating toll, the UN relief chief warned on Tuesday.
Some 41,000 refugees have crossed from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) into Uganda since January, many of them having witnessed killings, “sexual violence and other traumatic experience during their flight,” said the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) on Tuesday.
Kosovo’s recent parliamentary election – conducted peacefully and inclusively – marked a significant step in its democratic development, the UN’s top envoy said on Tuesday, noting gains in women’s representation.
In earthquake-shattered central Myanmar, people are sleeping in the streets in fear of buildings collapsing, facing early monsoon rains and the risk of waterborne diseases, the UN warned on Tuesday.
As ceasefires grow more fragile and conflicts more unpredictable, UN peacekeeping is having to adapt faster amid rising political tensions, disinformation and confusion over mandates.
UN Special Envoy for Syria, Geir Pedersen, issued a statement on Monday following his latest “extensive discussions” with leader of the caretaker administration in Damascus, Ahmed al-Sharaa.
The UN Secretary-General called on Monday for commitment to build a world of justice and dignity in honour of the victims and survivors of the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda.
An estimated 100 million people in more than 60 countries and territories live under the threat of landmines and explosive ordnance – with war-torn Ukraine now the most heavily contaminated country in the world – the UN Mine Action Service (UNMAS) said on Monday.
Amid the ongoing Israeli aid blockade and bombardment of Gaza, aid teams warned on Monday that civilians trapped there face multiple daily challenges as relief supplies run critically low.
Monday’s World Health Day highlights a critical issue for global health: the particular vulnerabilities faced by women and girls.
Monday’s World Health Day highlights a critical issue for global health: the particular vulnerabilities faced by women and girls.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The UN Humanitarian Coordinator in Ukraine has strongly condemned a missile strike in Kryvyi Rih on Friday which killed more than a dozen people, including at least nine children, and left several others injured.
The Artificial Intelligence (AI) race needs to slow down and IT firms should instead be focusing on the bigger picture to ensure that the technology is not misused on the battlefield, UN disarmament experts and leaders of ‘big tech’ companies have insisted.
The Palestinian Red Crescent Society (PRCS) on Friday called for urgent answers over the whereabouts of a missing paramedic, coupled with a full independent investigation into the killing of 15 humanitarian workers in Gaza on 23 March.
A global surge in cholera is threatening vulnerable people from Angola to Myanmar, fuelled by conflict, natural disasters and climate change, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Friday.
Amid reports of escalating settler violence in the West Bank, the UN rights office, OHCHR, briefed the Palestinian rights committee at UN Headquarters in New York, which also featured a screening of the Oscar winning documentary No Other Land.
Amid ongoing military airstrikes and growing humanitarian needs following last week’s 7.7 magnitude earthquake in Myanmar, the UN has intensified calls for immediate, unhindered aid access to assist millions affected by the disaster.
More than 100 million people worldwide are at risk from landmines, explosive remnants of war and improvised explosive devices (IEDs) Secretary-General António Guterres said on Friday, in his message for the International Day for Mine Awareness.
The fight for Sudan’s capital, Khartoum, likely involved widespread summary executions of civilians following its recent recapture by the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), UN human rights chief Volker Türk said on Thursday.
The recent killings of 15 medical personnel and humanitarian aid workers in Gaza raise further concerns over the commission of war crimes by the Israeli military, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights told the Security Council on Thursday.
