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STORY: UN / SYRIA POLITICAL HUMANITARIAN
TRT: 05:44
SOURCE: UNIFEED
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGES: ENGLISH / ARABIC / NATS
DATELINE: 13 FEBRUARY 2026, NEW YORK CITY / FILE
FILE - NEW YORK CITY
1. Wide shot, exterior, United Nations Headquarters
13 FEBRUARY 2026, NEW YORK CITY
2. Wide shot, Security Council
3. Med shot, Deputy Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for Syria Claudio Cordone addressing Council
4. SOUNDBITE (English) Claudio Cordone, Deputy Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for Syria:
“You will have seen the Secretary-General’s statement of 30 January welcoming the agreement. Let me also commend the parties for reaching it and thank those who have been supporting them in this effort. We look forward to its full and swift implementation with regard to the peaceful integration of northeast Syria, the protection of the rights of Syrian Kurds, and the safe, dignified, and voluntary return of displaced persons, creating conditions whereby all in that part of Syria can live in dignity and free from fear.”
5. Med shot, OCHA’s Director of Financing and Outreach Divisions Lisa Doughten and Syrian Ambassador Ibrahim Olabi
6. SOUNDBITE (English) Claudio Cordone, Deputy Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for Syria:
“Israeli incursions and search operations have continued. There are reports of the aerial spraying of herbicides by Israel, causing damage to crops and pastures. We reiterate our call for full respect for international law, Syria’s sovereignty, and territorial integrity. We also call on Israel to withdraw from areas it occupies in violation of the 1974 Disengagement of Forces Agreement. And we support the pursuit of mutually acceptable security arrangements between Israel and Syria.”
7. Med shot, Deputy Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for Syria Claudio Cordone addressing Council
8. SOUNDBITE (English) Claudio Cordone, Deputy Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for Syria:
“The next step in the political transition is the formation of the People’s Assembly. This Council will recall that voting for 122 of the 140 elected seats took place in October 2025. Following the 30 January agreement, the Supreme Committee for Elections announced that voting for four vacant seats in Raqqa governorate will take place in the coming weeks. Clarification is still pending on steps to fill a further 11 elected seats in Hasakah governorate and in the district of Ain-al-Arab, also known as Kobane.”
9. Med shot, Doughten addressing Council
10. SOUNDBITE (English) Lisa Doughten, Director of Financing and Outreach Divisions, Office of the
Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA):
“Last month’s clashes and military operations forced tens of thousands of people to flee their homes. While many have returned – particularly in Aleppo City – an estimated 130,000 remain displaced across the governorates of Al Hasakah, Ar-Raqqa, and Aleppo. Over 90 percent of those displaced are women and girls. Two-thirds are staying with host communities, straining already stretched households and services. Others are living in overcrowded camps, exposed to the biting cold of winter. Insecurity and road closures have disrupted supplies of clean water and curbed people’s access to health facilities and schools.”
11. Med shot, Cordone and civil society representative Muzna Dureid
12. SOUNDBITE (English) Lisa Doughten, Director of Financing and Outreach Divisions, Office of the
Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA):
“Needs in Syria remain immense, but there are encouraging indicators of real – if modest - improvements in the humanitarian situation. According to the recently concluded 2025 Food Security Assessment, food insecurity has been eased thanks to increases in remittances and wages, reduced price inflation for food, and other tentative improvements in the economy. But limited livelihood opportunities, the continued impact of insecurity and drought-like conditions have slowed the pace of gains. Some 700,000 people are still facing severe food insecurity, while 6.4 million are moderately food insecure.”
13. Med shot, Olabi addressing Council
14. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Ibrahim Olabi, Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Syrian Arab Republic:
“Syria is on the frontline of the fight against terrorism with actions and sacrifices, not words. The Syrian government continues to lead efforts to combat ISIS inside the country. In an existential battle in which Syrian men and women have paid a heavy price in defence of civic peace.”
15. Med shot, Olabi addressing Council
16. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Ibrahim Olabi, Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Syrian Arab Republic:
“However, the elimination of terrorism requires a genuine partnership. Sustained international support and addressing its economic and developmental root causes.”
17. Wide shot, end of Council session
18. Wide shot, Ambassadors at the stakeout podium
19. SOUNDBITE (English) James Kariuki, Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations, United Kingdom:
“We call for the full, equal, meaningful, and safe participation of women in all political and decision-making processes in Syria. We look forward to demonstrable progress and continued efforts to ensure that the transition in Syria is sustainable and inclusive, including empowered representation from across Syria’s diverse ethnic and religious communities.”
20. Wide shot, Ambassadors at the stakeout podium
21. SOUNDBITE (English) James Kariuki, Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations, United Kingdom:
“We expect the discriminatory laws passed under the Assad regime that deny women their rights will be revoked, and we encourage continued efforts towards the development of a national action plan in line with Security Council Resolution 1325.”
22. Wide shot, Olabi at the stakeout podium
23. SOUNDBITE (English) Ibrahim Olabi, Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Syrian Arab Republic:
“Syria looks forward to the continuation of the of its constructive cooperation with the United Nations and all the international partners in a manner that supports our efforts aimed at guaranteeing the rights of all Syrians without any discrimination or exception and building the prosperous and developed Syria worthy of really the immense sacrifices made by the Syrian people throughout the years of the revolution and their years of the dictatorship.”
24. Wide shot, Olabi walks away
Deputy Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for Syria Claudio Cordone today (13 Feb) welcomed the 30 January ceasefire, and comprehensive agreement was announced by the Syrian Government and the Syrian Democratic Forces and called for its “full and swift implementation.”
Cordone, in his first briefing to the Council in his new role, said this should include “the peaceful integration of northeast Syria, the protection of the rights of Syrian Kurds, and the safe, dignified and voluntary return of displaced persons, creating conditions whereby all in that part of Syria can live in dignity and free from fear.”
In the South of the country, the Deputy Special Envoy said, “there are reports of the aerial spraying of herbicides by Israel, causing damage to crops and pastures.”
He called “for full respect for international law, Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity” and for Israel “to withdraw from areas it occupies in violation of the 1974 Disengagement of Forces Agreement,” expressing support for “the pursuit of mutually acceptable security arrangements between Israel and Syria.”
The next step in the political transition, Cordone said, “is the formation of the People’s Assembly” and noted that “voting for 122 of the 140 elected seats took place in October 2025.”
He said, “following the 30 January agreement, the Supreme Committee for Elections announced that voting for four vacant seats in Raqqa governorate will take place in the coming weeks,” and added that “clarification is still pending on steps to fill a further 11 elected seats in Hasakah governorate and in the district of Ain-al-Arab, also known as Kobane.”
On the humanitarian front, Lisa Doughten, the Director of Financing and Outreach for the UN humanitarian agency (OCHA) told the Council that “last month’s clashes and military operations forced tens of thousands of people to flee their homes” and “while many have returned – particularly in Aleppo City – an estimated 130,000 remain displaced across the governorates of Al-Hasakah, Ar-Raqqa and Aleppo.”
Doughten said, “over 90 percent of those displaced are women and girls. Two-thirds are staying with host communities, straining already stretched households and services. Others are living in overcrowded camps, exposed to the biting cold of winter. Insecurity and road closures have disrupted supplies of clean water and curbed people’s access to health facilities and schools.”
She said, “needs in Syria remain immense, but there are encouraging indicators of real – if modest - improvements in the humanitarian situation” pointing out that according to the recently-concluded 2025 Food Security Assessment, “food insecurity has been eased thanks to increases in remittances and wages, reduced price inflation for food, and other tentative improvements in the economy.”
Doughten said, “limited livelihood opportunities, the continued impact of insecurity and drought-like conditions have slowed the pace of gains. Some 700,000 people are still facing severe food insecurity, while 6.4 million are moderately food insecure.”
Syrian Ambassador Ibrahim Olabi said, “Syria is on the frontline of the fight against terrorism with actions and sacrifices, not words. The Syrian government continues to lead efforts to combat ISIS inside the country. In an existential battle in which Syrian men and women have paid a heavy price in defence of civic peace.”
However, Olabi said, “the elimination of terrorism requires a genuine partnership. Sustained international support and addressing its economic and developmental root causes.”
Outside the Council before the meeting, British Ambassador James Kariuki, speaking on behalf of the Security Council signatories of the Shared Commitments on Women, Peace and Security (WPS) called for “the full, equal, meaningful, and safe participation of women in all political and decision-making processes in Syria.”
Kariuki said, “we look forward to demonstrable progress and continued efforts to ensure that the transition in Syria is sustainable and inclusive, including empowered representation from across Syria’s diverse ethnic and religious communities.”
He said, “we expect the discriminatory laws passed under the Assad regime that deny women their rights will be revoked, and we encourage continued efforts towards the development of a national action plan in line with Security Council Resolution 1325.”
After the meeting, Olabi told reporters that “Syria looks forward to the continuation of the of its constructive cooperation with the United Nations and all the international partners in a manner that supports our efforts aimed at guaranteeing the rights of all Syrians without any discrimination or exception and building the prosperous and developed Syria worthy of really the immense sacrifices made by the Syrian people throughout the years of the revolution and their years of the dictatorship.”
