Ban Ki-Moon says that Syrian forces attacked observer convoy

“Yesterday, the convoy of Lt Gen Babacar Gaye was attacked by armed tanks. Fortunately, there were no injuries,” Ban told reporters.

He said a dozen armored vehicles used by the observers have been destroyed by blasts and shelling. The UN observer mission’s latest 30-day mandate is due to expire in August. The mission has largely been sidelined by the violence.

“It’s important, again, that the Syrian government must fully cooperate with the UN mission and must cease these violent measures. We are deeply concerned that they are using all kinds of heavy equipment, including military airplanes,
attack helicopters and heavy weaponry,” Ban said. “This is an unacceptable situation. Every day, more than 100 people are being killed.”

Turning to fears of a wider Middle East war, Ban said, “A sectarian civil war would also gravely imperil Syria’s neighbors.” They are Turkey, Iraq, Lebanon, Jordan and Israel.

“As many as 2 million people are affected by violence. More fighting is not the answer,” Ban said. Syria recently acknowledged for the first time that it possesses chemical weapons but said it would only use them if the country
came under foreign attack.

“The use of these arms is prohibited under international law. Any use of such weapons would be an outrageous crime and a major concern for the entire international community,” Ban said. The UN Security Council has been stalemated
with Russia and China vetoes of Western and Arab attempts to impose sanctions on Assad’s government.

Short URL: https://www.newspakistan.pk/?p=30052

Posted by Hamza Jahangir on Jul 31 2012. Filed under World. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry