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GENEVA / SYRIA EVACUATION UPDATE
STORY: GENEVA / SYRIA EVACUATION UPDATE
TRT: 2:06
SOURCE: UNTV CH
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH/ NATS
DATELINE: 20 DECEMBER 2016, GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
1. Aerial shot, Palais des Nations
2. Wide shot, Press room
3. SOUNDBITE (English) Jens Laerke, spokesperson for the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA):
“I would like to stress that we have had, for several days, we’ve had a monitoring mechanism, we have had people at the Ramussa crossing as you know who have been able to observe what went on and we do believe that this presence provides protection. It is a well known, established way of providing protection by international presence.”
4. Cutaway, podium
5. SOUNDBITE (English) Jens Laerke, spokesperson for the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA):
“As of this morning, our reports indicate that nearly 19,000 from eastern Aleppo have been evacuated from eastern Aleppo since 15 December when the operation begin (sic); also, the parallel movement or evacuation from Foah and Kafraya, which began on 19 December, some 750 have been evacuated up to now, and they have been taken to government-controlled Aleppo, to the Jibrin are where there is public shelter.”
6. Close up, journalist, Palais des Nations, Geneva.
7. SOUNDBITE (English) Jens Laerke, spokesperson for the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA):
“You have to picture an operation where people do come out spontaneously, come forward, and we see them and they move for example on perceived threats, or perceived security, or perceived, ‘Now, we can move.’ We had a situation just the other day when they had actually gone onto the buses and things went wrong and they were stuck in the busses. for approximately 10 hours, not being able to go in or out, back or forth, and then at the end they had abort that mission. So it’s very, very difficult and that’s why we will not put down a number. What we do say is, that as long as there are people who are in need and express a wish to leave, the operation should continue.”
8. Cutaway, journalists
The United Nations reported Tuesday that an estimated 19,000 people have been evacuated from the last opposition-held areas of Syria’s eastern Aleppo, insisting that the operation should continue “as long as there are people who are in need.”
Speaking to reporters in Geneva, Jens Laerke from the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), said that around 750 people have been bussed out of the villages of Foah and Kafraya since Monday, and taken to government-controlled shelters.
The developments follow the UN Security Council’s vote on Monday (19 Dec) in favour of allowing international monitors from the UN and partners into Aleppo to oversee the evacuations, which are being carried out by the Syrian government.
Responding to questions about the UN’s role in the monitoring process, Laerke said that observers had been in place for several days already at the so-called Ramussa crossing.
Ramussa is the place in Aleppo city where green single-decker coaches packed with civilians pass from opposition-held enclaves into government-controlled areas of the city, before continuing on to Idlib, which is still in the hands of anti-government fighters.
OCHA spokesperson also said “for several days, we’ve had a monitoring mechanism, we have had people at the Ramussa crossing as you know who have been able to observe what went on and we do believe that this presence provides protection. It is a well known, established way of providing protection by international presence.”
According to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), more than 184 coachloads of people have left eastern Aleppo since 18 December.
UN-partner the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has indicated that 900 bus journeys would be necessary to transport all those who wished to leave eastern Aleppo.
OCHA’s Jens Laerke highlighted the difficulty of the operation.
Laerke said “you have to picture an operation where people do come out spontaneously, come forward, and we see them and they move for example on perceived threats, or perceived security, or perceived, ‘Now, we can move.’ We had a situation just the other day when they had actually gone onto the buses and things went wrong and they were stuck for approximately 10 hours, not being able to go in or out, back or forth, and then at the end they had abort that mission. So it’s very, very difficult and that’s why we will not put down a number; what we do say is, that as long as there are people who in need and express a wish to leave, the operation should continue.”
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), 301 medical evacuations have also taken place from eastern Aleppo; 259 men, 42 women and 67 children.
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