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STORY: GA / SYRIA CEASEFIRE
TRT: 02:35
SOURCE: UNIFEED
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / RUSSIAN / ARABIC / NATS
DATELINE: 09 DECEMBER 2016, NEW YORK CITY / FILE
FILE – RECENT, NEW YORK CITY
1. Wide shot, exterior United Nations headquarters
09 DECEMBER 2016, NEW YORK CITY
Close up, delegate’s hand casting vote
2. SOUNDUP (English) Peter Thomson, President, General Assembly:
“Draft resolution A/71/L.39 as earlier corrected, is adopted.”
3. Close up, voting board showing voting results
4. Wide shot, US Ambassador Samantha Power walks up to the podium
5. SOUNDBITE (English) Samantha Power, Permanent Representative of the United States to the United Nations:
“Russia, the Assad regime, and all of their allies bombarding Eastern Aleppo are watching this room carefully. So, somehow, are the people in Eastern Aleppo. This is a vote to stand up and tell Russia and Assad to stop the carnage. This is a vote to defend the bedrock principles of how states should act even in war. This is a vote to demand food, medicine, and safety urgently for a population in Eastern Aleppo who have none.”
6. Wide shot, Russian Ambassador Vitaly Churkin walks up to the podium
7. SOUNDBITE (English) Vitaly Churkin, Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to the United Nations:
“The Syrian matter, as a matter of international security needs to be considered by the Security Council in line with its prerogatives in the United Nations Charter. To assert that Security Council efforts to uphold peace in Syria are blocked is to distort reality. If at times consensus eludes us on a given document - as you are aware the last time it occurred was 5 December – that means that it was imbalanced, insufficiently well-prepared and served to further goals which are far from settlement.”
8. Wide shot, British Ambassador Matthew Rycroft walks up to the podium
9. SOUNDBITE (English) Matthew Rycroft, Permanent Representative of the United Kingdom to the United Nations:
“Russia claims they are being misrepresented. They proudly point to the suspension of combat operations yesterday and the evacuation of 8,000 people as evidence of their humanitarian intent. But until Russia, Iran, and the Syrian regime have implemented every word of the resolution we are about to adopt, and the countless others passed by the Security Council, it will simply be too little, too late.”
10. Wide shot, Syrian Ambassador Bashar Ja'afari walks up to the podium
11. SOUNDBITE (English) Bashar Ja'afari, Permanent Representative of the Syrian Arab Republic to the United Nations:
“The Canadian government which claims interest in the welfare of the Syrian people participated from the first day in so-called international coalition against ISIS of Daesh in Syria. That coalition which in inimical to international legitimacy and which violates daily Syrian sovereignty.”
12. Wide shot, General Assembly
Expressing outrage at the escalation of violence in Syria, particularly war-battered Aleppo, the General Assembly today (9 Dec) adopted a resolution demanding an immediate and complete end to all attacks on civilians as well as an end to all sieges in war-ravaged country.
In a resolution adopted by a vote of 122 in favour, 13 against and 36 abstentions, the Assembly also expressed grave concern at the continued deterioration of the devastating humanitarian situation in the country and demanded unhindered access to all humanitarian actors.
US Ambassador Samantha Power, who voted in favour of the resolution, told the General Assembly that “this is a vote to stand up” and tell Russia and Bashar Al-Assad’s government “to stop the carnage.”
She said “this is a vote to defend the bedrock principles of how states should act even in war. This is a vote to demand food, medicine, and safety urgently for a population in Eastern Aleppo who have none.”
Action in the Assembly comes just days after the UN Security Council failed to adopt a similar resolution demanding a ceasefire in Aleppo, as two of its permanent members, China and Russia, casts their vetoes.
Russian Ambassador Vitaly Churkin, who voted against the resolution, argued that the Syrian situation should be dealt with by the Security Council, not the General Assembly.
He said “to assert that Security Council efforts to uphold peace in Syria are blocked is to distort reality. If at times consensus eludes us on a given document - as you are aware the last time it occurred was 5 December – that means that it was imbalanced, insufficiently well-prepared and served to further goals which are far from settlement.”
British Ambassador Matthew Rycroft said “Russia claims they are being misrepresented. They proudly point to the suspension of combat operations yesterday and the evacuation of 8,000 people as evidence of their humanitarian intent. But until Russia, Iran, and the Syrian regime have implemented every word of the resolution we are about to adopt, and the countless others passed by the Security Council, it will simply be too little, too late.”
In the resolution, led by Canada, the General Assembly expressed outrage at extensive and persistent violations of international humanitarian and international human rights laws, especially through shelling and aerial bombardment, use of chemical and other prohibited weapons, and use of siege and starvation of civilians as a method of warfare, that have caused profound suffering and loss of life and created conditions conducive to the rise and spread of terrorism.
Syrian Ambassador Bashar Ja'afari said “the Canadian government which claims interest in the welfare of the Syrian people participated from the first day in so-called international coalition against ISIS of Daesh in Syria. That coalition which in inimical to international legitimacy and which violates daily Syrian sovereignty.”
Earlier today, the UN human rights wing warned that there may currently be around 100,000 civilians in areas under the control of armed opposition groups in eastern Aleppo, with another 30,000 believed to have fled heavy bombardment to areas under Government control.
