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STORY: UN / SYRIA COI INTERVIEW
TRT: 03:30
SOURCE: UN NEWS
RESTRICTIONS: PLEASE CREDIT UNHCR AND OCHA FOOTAGE ON SCREEN
LANGUAGES: ENGLISH / NATS
DATELINE: 17 DECEMBER 2024, NEW YORK CITY
UNHCR - 11 DECEMBER 2024, ALEPPO, SYRIA
1. Various shots, road from Damascus to Aleppo
17 DECEMBER 2024, NEW YORK CITY
4. SOUNDBITE (English) Hanny Megally, Commissioner of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Syria:
“It's a huge number of tasks ahead for the new authorities, but we begin essentially with an effort to say, let's begin by protecting those who have survived this, and let's look at protecting the evidence to be able to help them find out the truth and hold those who are most responsible accountable.”
UNHCR - 11 DECEMBER 2024, ALEPPO, SYRIA
5. Wide shot, UN convoy in Damascus
17 DECEMBER 2024, NEW YORK CITY
6. SOUNDBITE (English) Hanny Megally, Commissioner of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Syria:
“Once you've tampered with grave sites and you've mixed up the what's in there, then it's very difficult to later come and identify who was buried there. Often with grave sites you need to have the evidence of that's written down, so that when you're digging, you're already pretty much know what you're going to find rather than you hope you can dig and find out that way.”
UNHCR - 11 DECEMBER 2024, ALEPPO, SYRIA
7. Various shots, classroom with teacher and children
17 DECEMBER 2024, NEW YORK CITY
8. SOUNDBITE (English) Hanny Megally, Commissioner of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Syria:
“It's very important that the Syrians are in charge of their own affairs in doing that, because that's how people feel they took charge and it's justice that they came to as opposed to its being imposed on them by the outside world and there'd be question marks about who's being held accountable and who's not being held accountable, etcetera. And we've seen those mistakes in other places.”
UNHCR - 16 DECEMBER 2024, IDLEB- BAB EL HAWA CROSSING POINT WITH TÜRKIYE
9. Wide shot, internally displaced persons (IDP) camps in rural Idlib
17 DECEMBER 2024, NEW YORK CITY
10. SOUNDBITE (English) Hanny Megally, Commissioner of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Syria:
“There's another priority right now, which is 90% of Syrians are living below the poverty line. And much of the country has been destroyed from the Civil War, so there has to be an element of also giving priority to helping people rebuild their lives, rebuild their homes, restoring some level of security and safety within Syria. The conflict is not over yet. Syria still divided into different parts.”
UNHCR - 16 DECEMBER 2024, IDLEB- BAB EL HAWA CROSSING POINT WITH TÜRKIYE
11. Wide shot, the road between Aleppo and the Bab al-Hawa border crossing with
Türkiye in the Idlib countryside
17 DECEMBER 2024, NEW YORK CITY
12. SOUNDBITE (English) Hanny Megally, Commissioner of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Syria:
“What might work right now is a temporary suspension of the sanctions. So it lifts the you know, the worst aspects, it allows the country to begin to get support from the outside. Member States can judge if the things are moving in the right direction and then that could be solidified.”
UNHCR - 16 DECEMBER 2024, IDLEB- BAB EL HAWA CROSSING POINT WITH TÜRKIYE
13. Various shots, a child carrying his toy
17 DECEMBER 2024, NEW YORK CITY
14. SOUNDBITE (English) Hanny Megally, Commissioner of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Syria:
“It's quite bewildering to see this happening. It's unprecedented in many ways and in our view it's not helpful to a country that's just managed to change a dictatorship and it's beginning to focus on moving forward and restoring peace to then be hearing every day there is bombing all over the country being carried out by another state.”
OCHA - 17 DECEMBER 2024, DAMASCUS, SYRIA
15. Wide shot, tracking, UN convoy in Damascus
Hanny Megally, Commissioner of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic, during an interview with UN News, highlighted the immense challenges in Syria, and the need to prioritize survivors’ protection and evidence preservation. He said, “It's a huge number of tasks ahead for the new authorities, but we begin essentially with an effort to say, let's begin by protecting those who have survived this, and let's look at protecting the evidence to be able to help them find out the truth and hold those who are most responsible accountable.”
On the delicate process of justice and accountability, Megally stressed the importance of Syrian-led efforts to ensure legitimacy and public trust. “It's very important that the Syrians are in charge of their own affairs” as opposed to control “being imposed on them by the outside world,” he explained.
The Commissioner also drew attention to the dire humanitarian situation, noting that 90 percent of Syrians are living below the poverty line, with widespread destruction from the civil war. He stressed the importance of “giving priority to helping people rebuild their lives, rebuild their homes, restoring some level of security and safety within Syria,” adding that the conflict continues to divide the country.
On the topic of sanctions, Megally suggested a temporary suspension as a potential step to aid recovery since “it allows the country to begin to get support from the outside,” he said, emphasizing the need for international cooperation.
Addressing the historic events in Syria, Megally described the situation as “bewildering” and “unprecedented.” He also criticized external bombings, calling them counterproductive to the country’s efforts to move forward after ending a dictatorship and focusing on peace restoration.
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