UN / NORTHWEST SYRIA

“Deeply concerned” over a recent military escalation in northwest Syria, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres called for an “immediate cessation of hostilities”. UNIFEED

• Categories: News & Features / News Stories / Unifeed
• Video Length: 00:01:11
• Production Date: 24 December 2019
• Asset Language: English
• Personal Subject: STEPHANE DUJARRIC
• Corporate Name: UNITED NATIONS CHILDREN'S FUND - UNICEF
• Subject Topical: CHILDREN; CHILDREN IN ARMED CONFLICTS; CONFLICT SITUATION
• Geographic Subject: SYRIA
• MAMS Id: 2518037
• Parent Id: 2518037
• Alternate Title: unifeed191224b

Description

STORY: UN / NORTHWEST SYRIA
TRT: 1:11
SOURCE: UNIFEED
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH /NATS

DATELINE: 24 DECEMBER 2019, NEW YORK CITY

Shotlist

FILE

1. Exterior shot, UN Headquarters

24 DECEMBER 2019, NEW YORK CITY

2. Wide shot, press room
3. Cutaway, reporter
4. SOUNDBITE (English) Stephane Dujarric, spokesperson for the UN Secretary-General:
“Secretary-General said he is deeply concerned about the military escalation in the northwest and called for an immediate cessation of hostilities. He reminded all parties of their obligations to protect civilians and ensure freedom of movement and said that sustained, unimpeded and safe humanitarian access to civilians, including through cross-border modality, must be guaranteed in order to allow the United Nations and its humanitarian partners to continue to carry out their critical work in northern Syria. UNICEF also issued a statement saying that children are bearing the brunt of the intensifying violence. More than 500 children have been injured or killed in the first nine months of 2019, and at least 65 children have been killed or injured in the month of December alone. UNICEF called on all parties to cease hostilities and put children first for once and for all.”
5. Close up, reporter
6. Wide shot, press room

Storyline

In a statement read by the spokesperson for the Secretary-General, Stephane Dujarric, today (24 Dec) in New York, the UN chief expressed alarm over the scale of the military operation and reported attacks on evacuation routes as civilians try to flee north to safety.

“The Secretary-General reminds all parties of their obligations to protect civilians and ensure freedom of movement”, said Dujarric.

The military escalation has yielded dozens of civilian casualties and displaced 80,000 citizens, including 30,000 in the last week alone.

“Sustained, unimpeded and safe humanitarian access to civilians, including through the cross-border modality, must be guaranteed” to allow the UN and its humanitarian partners to continue to carry out their critical work in the country’s north, according to the statement.

In the statement, the Secretary-General also reiterated that there is no military resolution to the Syrian conflict and that the only credible solution is a UN-facilitated political process pursuant to Security Council resolution 2254 of 2015, which calls for a ceasefire and a political settlement.

Dujarric also read a statement issued by the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) stating that more than 500 were injured or killed in the first nine months of this year, and at least 65 have been killed or injured in December alone.

“Children are bearing the brunt of the intensifying violence,” read Dujarric. “UNICEF called on all parties to cease hostilities and put children first for once and for all,” he added.

The upsurge in violence and displacement comes as temperatures around the region plummet, bringing flooding and freezing rain, and pushing thousands of families to flee north.

Nine years into the war, children in Syria continue to experience unspeakable violence, trauma and distress. And those living in camps are exhausted from multiple displacements and being exposed to the cold, illness and, in extreme cases, death.