SYRIA: Syrian political author and researcher tells Reuters his country has the "serious political will" to make UN-Arab League Envoy Kofi Annan's plan succeed

Record ID: 280683

  • Title: SYRIA: Syrian political author and researcher tells Reuters his country has the "serious political will" to make UN-Arab League Envoy Kofi Annan's plan succeed
  • Date: 16th April 2012
  • Summary: DAMASCUS, SYRIA (APRIL 15, 2012) (REUTERS) OMRAN AL-ZOUBI, POLITICAL AUTHOR AND RESEARCHER, ENTERING THE OFFICE BOOKS (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) SYRIAN POLITICAL AUTHOR AND RESEARCHER, OMRAN AL-ZOUBI, SAYING: "The decision -- in its language and goals -- is in harmony with the will of Syria's leadership. The Syrian leadership have the political intent to allow the monitors t
  • Embargoed: 1st May 2012 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Syrian Arab Republic
  • Country: Syria
  • Topics: Conflict
  • Reuters ID: LVA2BIEGNZ4WYONN74T8WHVH3UJP
  • Story Text: Hours before an initial team of United Nations ceasefire monitors were due to arrive in Syria, a Syrian political author and researcher told Reuters on Sunday (April 15) his government welcomed the monitors and was keen on exposing those responsible for the violence and massacres in his country.
    "The decision -- in its language and goals -- is in harmony with the will of Syria's leadership," Omran al-Zoubi told Reuters in Damascus.
    "The Syrian leadership have the political intent to allow the monitors to spread across the country...Their presence on the ground will reveal exactly who is responsible for the violence and massacres," Zoubi added.
    The monitors will be deployed on Monday (April 16) in an effort to keep UN-Arab League Envoy Kofi Annan's ceasefire peace plan on track, the spokesman for Annan said Sunday.
    The six-person advance team will be joined by two dozen more observers in coming days in line with a UN Security Council resolution adopted on Saturday (April 14) authorising the deployment of up to 30, Ahmad Fawzi said.
    However, the Syrian government said on Sunday it had a right to refuse monitors depending on their nationalities. Government spokeswoman and presidential adviser Bouthaina Shaaban also said the government could not be responsible for the safety of the monitors unless it was involved in "all steps on the ground".
    But Zoubi assured his government wants Annan's plan to succeed and said other countries would be blamed for its failure.
    "I believe that if other countries, like Qatar, Turkey and Saudi Arabia had the political will to allow Annan's plan to succeed, then Annan's will will be successful. In other words, if the political of these countries equals Syria's serious political will to allow the plan to succeed, then the plan will succeed. But if the plan fails, then Qatar, Turkey and Saudi arabia will be directly responsible for its failure."
    Four days after a ceasefire was meant to come into effect, Syrian government forces shelled the city of Homs on Sunday, resident opposition activists and a rights activist Annan, joint special envoy of the United Nations and Arab League, brokered a six-point peace plan that was accepted in late March by the government of President Bashar al-Assad and the Syrian armed opposition to end 13 months of violence.
    However, Syrian troops and their heavy weaponry did not withdraw from towns as required under the plan before the fragile ceasefire took effect last Thursday at dawn, and there have been some reports of violence and shelling since.
    The idea is for the unarmed monitors to deploy as soon as possible -- provided their security is guaranteed -- to start supervising truce compliance while Annan presses ahead with other steps including the start of political dialogue.
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2012. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
  • Usage Terms/Restrictions: None
Register