UN / SYRIA OBRIEN

Emergency Relief Coordinator Stephen O’Brien told the Security Council today (30 Mar) that “after five years of senseless and brutal conflict,” there is “glimmer of hope that the suffering of the Syrian people might finally be coming to an end.” UNIFEED-UNTV

• Categories: News & Features / News Stories / Unifeed
• Video Length: 00:01:46
• Production Date: 30 March 2016
• Asset Language: English
• Personal Subject: STEPHEN O'BRIEN
• Corporate Name: OFFICE FOR THE COORDINATION OF HUMANITARIAN AFFAIRS - OCHA
• Subject Topical: HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE
• Geographic Subject: SYRIA
• MAMS Id: 1592735
• Parent Id: 1592735
• Alternate Title: unifeed160330b

Description

STORY: UN / SYRIA OBRIEN
TRT: 01:46
SOURCE: UNIFEED-UNTV
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS

DATELINE: 30 MARCH 2016, NEW YORK CITY / FILE

Shotlist

FILE- NEW YORK CITY

1. Wide shot, exterior, UN headquarters

30 MARCH 2016, NEW YORK CITY

2. Wide shot, Security Council
3. Med shot, delegates
4. SOUNDBITE (English) Stephen O'Brien, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief:
“After five years of senseless and brutal conflict, we have all been longing for a glimmer of hope that the suffering of the Syrian people might finally be coming to an end. The past few weeks have brought such a glimmer, with far fewer civilians killed and injured since the cessation of hostilities came into effect one month ago.”
5. Med shot, delegates
6. SOUNDBITE (English) Stephen O'Brien, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief:
“After a chronicle of missed opportunities this is the time for the various parties to come together and bring an end to this horrendous chapter in Syria’s history.”
7. Med shot, delegates
8. SOUNDBITE (English) Stephen O'Brien, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief:
“The recent opening of access to some locations must only be the start of a steep change in access. Access has to go beyond allowing more aid convoys to deliver limited supplies. We need to move beyond the notion of one-off, ad hoc distributions of assistance to a given besieged or hard-to reach location is somehow sufficient and acceptable, because it is not and never will be.”
9. Med shot, delegates
10. SOUNDBITE (English) Stephen O'Brien, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief:
“We should also not forget the situation of the estimated nearly two million people living under daily oppression and terror in ISIL-held areas. We have little to no access to them and continue to receive reports of widespread human rights abuses.”
11. Zoom out, Security Council

Storyline

Emergency Relief Coordinator Stephen O’Brien told the Security Council today (30 Mar) that “after five years of senseless and brutal conflict,” there is “glimmer of hope that the suffering of the Syrian people might finally be coming to an end.”

O’Brien said that over the past few “far fewer civilians killed and injured since the cessation of hostilities came into effect one month ago.”

He stressed that “after a chronicle of missed opportunities this is the time for the various parties to come together and bring an end to this horrendous chapter in Syria’s history.”

Nevertheless, the humanitarian official said “the recent opening of access to some locations must only be the start of a steep change in access. Access has to go beyond allowing more aid convoys to deliver limited supplies. We need to move beyond the notion of one-off, ad hoc distributions of assistance to a given besieged or hard-to reach location is somehow sufficient and acceptable, because it is not and never will be.”

Also, O’Brien said “we should also not forget the situation of the estimated nearly two million people living under daily oppression and terror in ISIL-held areas. We have little to no access to them and continue to receive reports of widespread human rights abuses.”

Since the beginning of the year 150,000 people in 11 the 18 besieged areas in Syria, have been reached by inter-agency convoys.