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United Nations

US Ambassador to UN Condemns Syria's Brutal Suppression of Peaceful Protests

Strategic Insights

— 2 min read

US Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice expressed outrage at the Security Council's failure to address the Syrian regime's brutal suppression of peaceful protests, condemning the Council's inaction as a "grave failure" that may doom the prospects for peaceful protest in the face of a regime that knows no limits. Rice emphasized that the Syrian government's actions amount to crimes against humanity, as warned by the UN's High Commissioner for Human Rights. The US believes that the Council should impose tough, targeted sanctions and an arms embargo on the Asad regime, but two members vetoed a watered-down text that doesn't even mention sanctions.

Key Takeaways:

  • The Syrian regime has deliberately unleashed violence, torture, and persecution against peaceful protesters, human rights defenders, and their families for over six months.
  • The High Commissioner for Human Rights has warned that the Syrian government's actions might amount to crimes against humanity.
  • The US Ambassador to the UN, Susan Rice, condemned the Security Council's failure to pass a hortatory resolution to counter the Asad regime's brutal oppression.
  • The Syrian regime's efforts to mask its atrocities are transparent, and its promises of reform are empty.
  • Some on the Council argue that the Asad regime's abuses are not that egregious, or that the regime deserves more time for its so-called reforms.
  • The US rejects the claim that strong Council action on Syria would merely be a pretext for military intervention, calling it a "cheap ruse" by those who would rather sell arms to the Syrian regime than stand with the Syrian people.
  • The Council will not even mandate the dispatch of human rights monitors to Syria, a grave failure that may doom the prospects for peaceful protest.
  • Regional organizations such as the League of Arab States, the Gulf Cooperation Council, and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation have urged the Syrian government to stop the bloodshed.
  • The US urges the governments that failed to support Council action to change course and heed the voices of the Syrian people.

Statistics:

  • The Syrian regime has been suppressing peaceful protests for over six months.
  • The US has clearly condemned the violence and made clear that the Syrian regime's repression is utterly unacceptable.
  • Several of us on this Council and many throughout the international community have imposed sanctions on the Asad regime.
  • The Syrian government has refused to meet its international obligations, including those laid out in this Council's August 3 Presidential Statement.

Sources:

  • Remarks by Susan Rice, Ambassador, Permanent Representative to the United Nations, United States Mission to the United Nations, State Department, at a Security Council Adoption on the Situation in the Middle East (Syria) (As Released by the United States Mission to the United Nations)

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