| | | Date: Mar 28, 2018 | | Source: The Daily Star |  |  |  |
| | UN faces 'day of shame' over failed Syria truce: Haley | Agence France Presse
UNITED NATIONS: U.S. Ambassador Nikki Haley Tuesday rebuked the U.N. Security Council over Syria, saying the failure of a 30-day ceasefire should be a "day of shame" for council members.
Russia hit back that it was the only country working to turn the ceasefire into a reality on the ground in Syria, where government forces have recaptured nearly all of Eastern Ghouta in a fierce month-long offensive.
"This should be a day of shame for every member of this council," Haley said.
She said 1,600 people had "died on our watch" in Eastern Ghouta since the council unanimously adopted a ceasefire resolution on Feb. 24 after intense negotiations with Russia, President Bashar Assad's ally.
Syrians continued to be taken on buses out of Eastern Ghouta Tuesday in an evacuation the West sees as a strategy of starve-and-siege, directed against civilians to force a surrender of armed groups.
"After years of enduring siege and starvation, residents are surrendering Eastern Ghouta," Haley said.
Russian Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia said the departures were voluntary and that Moscow's forces were providing food, shelter and medical aid to those in need.
"Perhaps it is not to the liking of some, but in fact we are the sole member to undertake concrete measures to implement Resolution 2301," Nebenzia said.
France expressed concern with the fate of 55,000 civilians held in nine camps administered by the Syrian government near Eastern Ghouta, without access to water or electricity.
"Their fate has not improved. Their hell has just moved a few kilometers away," French Ambassador Francois Delattre said.
U.N. aid agencies continue to be denied access to Eastern Ghouta.
Sweden and Kuwait, which drafted the ceasefire resolution, maintain that it remains in force and are urging action to ensure the truce finally takes hold across the country. |
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