SYRIA: UNSMIS Spokeswoman says the U.N. observers have not entered Mazraat al-Qubeir, a village where opposition activists say at least 78 people were massacred a day before, despite pro-government Syrian Addounia TV report that they have arrived

Record ID: 280854

  • Title: SYRIA: UNSMIS Spokeswoman says the U.N. observers have not entered Mazraat al-Qubeir, a village where opposition activists say at least 78 people were massacred a day before, despite pro-government Syrian Addounia TV report that they have arrived
  • Date: 8th June 2012
  • Summary: DAMASCUS, SYRIA (JUNE 7, 2012) (REUTERS) SAUSAN GHOSHEH, UNSMIS SPOKESWOMAN, ARRIVING TO BRIEFING CAMERAMEN / GHOSHEH SPEAKING (SOUNDBITE) (English) UNITED NATIONS SUPERVISION MISSION IN SYRIA (UNSMIS) SPOKESWOMAN, SAUSAN GHOSHEH, SAYING: "Their mission has been obstructed by three factors. The first, we've been stopped at Syrian Army checkpoints and at some points tur
  • Embargoed: 23rd June 2012 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Syrian Arab Republic
  • Country: Syria
  • Topics: Conflict,International Relations
  • Reuters ID: LVA1CRNII92LEN5OGQPG58OPK58E
  • Story Text: A United Nations Supervision Mission in Syria (UNSMIS) spokeswoman said UN observers had not entered Mazraat al-Qubeir on Thursday (June 7), where activists say at least 78 villagers had been massacred a day before by forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad -- a charge Damascus denies.
    "Their mission has been obstructed by three factors. The first, we've been stopped at Syrian Army checkpoints and at some points turned back. The second is that we were stopped by civilians in the area. They stopped our cars from proceeding going forward. The third is that we got information and phone calls from residents in the area saying that the security of our observers is at risk. So until now we have not been able to enter, but despite these challenges, our observers are still working on getting into the village," said Sausan Ghosheh, UNSMIS spokeswoman.
    Ghosheh's statement contradicted reports from the pro-government Syrian Addounia TV, which said on Thursday the UN observers had indeed arrived in Mazraat al-Qubeir.
    Syria said that an attack on the village near Hama was the work of anti-government militants.
    Ghosheh admitted it was difficult to confirm the exact situation in Mazraat al-Qubeir.
    "We've received information from different sources, from the residents describing the situation, from government officials, and the information that we have right now is not consistent, so we cannot confirm and we cannot verify. We don't talk about what we hear. We only talk about what we see," she said.
    In an announcement on state television, the Syrian government refuted media reports blaming Syrian troops and militiamen loyal to President Bashar al-Assad for the killing of scores of villagers at Mazraat al-Qubeir.
    Several activists who monitor the 15-month-old revolt gave accounts to Reuters that women and children were among the dead when the village in central Syria came under artillery bombardment before fighters moved in on the ground and shot and stabbed dozens of people to death.
    Some activists said at least 40 of the dead were women and children.
    However, Syrian state television gave a different account of events.
    "A group of armed terrorists committed a horrific crime on Wednesday morning, yesterday. As a result, nine people were killed including women and children. After committing this crime, the farm's residents appealed to the authorities to intervene to protect them and stop the terrorist crimes. The authorities raided the terrorist cell and clashed with them. As a result, the group members were killed and their weapons, which included RPGs and bombs, were confiscated," the statement said.
    The statement also said the killings in Mazraat al-Qubeir were aimed at influencing a meeting among foreign powers sympathetic to the opposition in Istanbul, and a United Nations Security Council meeting later this week.
    A 300-strong force of U.N. truce observers has been in Syria for weeks and can be expected to investigate the accounts from Mazraat al-Qubeir. If confirmed, the latest killings of at least 78 people will pile the pressure on the world powers to act.
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