UNITED NATIONS SPECIAL ENVOY GEIR O. PEDERSEN BRIEFING TO THE SECURITY COUNCIL ON THE SITUATION IN NORTH-WESTERN SYRIA

Arabic version

As delivered

Mr. President,

1. Thank you for the opportunity to brief on the alarming situation in north-west Syria,
which has further escalated since last week’s briefings. Heavy strikes from both air and
ground are causing massive waves of civilian displacement and major loss of civilian life.
We are witnessing the humanitarian catastrophe that the Secretary-General has warned
of, and which the Emergency Relief Coordinator Mark Lowcock will brief you about,
very shortly. This is causing totally unacceptable human suffering -- and endangering
international peace and security. And yet it can -- and therefore must -- stop now.

2. On 12 January, Russia and Turkey announced that they agreed on a fresh ceasefire for the
north-west. Yet heavy clashes and mutual shelling continued despite the ceasefire. Two
days later, airstrikes by the Syrian government and their allies resumed.

3. Syrian Government forces have since launched a ground offensive in southeastern areas
of the Idlib de-escalation zone. They have made significant advances, most recently
establishing control over the major town of Maarat al-Numan, whose population had fled
from earlier attacks. Maarat al Numan lies on the strategic M5 highway and pro-
Government forces have continued to push north, reaching the city of Saraqeb, the
junction of the M4 and M5 highways and close to Idlib city.

4. In Idlib city, there are already reports of deep fear and of civilians fleeing or preparing to
flee. Aerial bombardment in support of the government’s offensive reportedly continues.
Hostilities have also intensified on other fronts, especially in western Aleppo, where
Government forces have advanced.

5. During the same period, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham -- a terrorist organization designated by
this Council -- and armed opposition groups, launched several attacks and counterattacks
along these fronts, including western Aleppo and al-Bab in northern Aleppo. There were
reports of intensified shelling on civilian areas of western Aleppo and of civilian
casualties. There are reports of weaponized drones being launched on Syrian and Russian
military installations southwest of Idlib. The Russian Foreign Ministry has stated that
Russian military personnel have been killed.

6. Turkish forces and Syrian government forces have directly clashed inside Syria. On 3
February, Syrian Government artillery reportedly hit a Turkish observation post near
Saraqeb. Seven Turkish soldiers were killed and several more injured, according to the
Turkish Ministry of Defense. We have since seen differing reports of dozens of Syrian
government forces killed in Turkish strikes on Syrian Government positions.

7. Statements from Russian and Turkish leadership in recent days have shown deep
differences between the sponsors of the Idlib de-escalation arrangements. Two days ago,
the Secretary-General noted his “enormous concern” that the most recent developments
constituted a “change in the nature of the conflict” and reiterated his strong appeal for a
cessation of hostilities.

8. So far these calls have not been heeded. In the last two months, hundreds of civilians
have been killed, more than half a million civilians have been displaced, and most are
fleeing into ever-shrinking areas where they still hope to find relative safety. Further
mass displacement seems inevitable if fighting continues.

9. We appear to have lost sight of the principle of proportionality. Let me be very clear and
remind all parties that attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure, including on
healthcare and educational facilities, are unacceptable. All military operations --
including those against and by terrorist groups designated by the Security Council -- must
respect the requirements of international humanitarian law, including the protection of
civilians and civilian objects.

Mr. President,

10. Ordinary people in Idlib are conveying to me their grave fears for their lives and safety.
They feel totally voiceless. Civil society actors inside Idlib, the best antidote and counterweight
to radicalism, feel dismayed and abandoned. Syrian women have shared with me
their fears of continued insecurity, including increased violence targeting women fleeing
and living in displacement.

11. Idlib is the place that became a refuge for hundreds of thousands of civilians from other
parts of Syria who fled violence. As a result, the population of the Idlib de-escalation area
has now swollen to an estimated 3 million, the vast majority of whom are civilians.

12. Idlib is also the place that fighters and civilians who refused to “settle their status” earlier
also sought refuge. And HTS and other Security Council-proscribed terrorist groups,
including foreign fighters, are a major force in Idlib. Their presence and influence in the
area is unacceptable and a major challenge – first and foremost to the civilian population
of Idlib itself, and also in a wider sense for Syria and for regional and international
security.

13. But we know from bitter experience that a continued all-out military approach will not
solve this problem. And it will come at a completely unacceptable price. What we are
now seeing creates the very real prospect of a bloody and protracted last stand on the
Turkish border, with grave consequences for civilians -- and the risk of dispersal of
foreign terrorist fighters and ongoing insurgency afterwards. We know that the
continuation of the military approach will only entrench and further harden the deep

international divisions over Syria and lead to more and more pressure – weakening
prospects for a step-by-step dynamic to build trust and confidence. And the events of the
last few days in which the armies of two UN member states – Syria and Turkey – have
clashed inside Syria suggest the very real prospect of conflagration in the immediate
region -- and far beyond too.

14. But we also know something else, Mr. President: we know that it is possible via
agreement to stabilize parts of Syria and work on ways out. Idlib is a de-escalation area
established by agreement in May 2017, and was the subject of a further Russian-Turkish
stabilization memorandum in September 2018. These agreements do not have third party
monitoring, and thus we are not in a position to comment on their terms or their
observance.

15. But what we do know is that these agreements can enable prolonged periods of calm. So
why can we not make this happen once again? This is the message that I have impressed
in my meetings recently in Moscow and Damascus, and with high-level Turkish officials,
and with the co-Chairs of the Humanitarian Task Force meeting today in Geneva. I will
take this message to Tehran in the coming days, and I will continue to press on the most
important actors their responsibility to take a different path.

16. I do not pretend to have a magical solution for Idlib. But I am convinced that with a
serious attempt at international cooperation a solution can be found, building on earlier
agreements, but also augmenting them.
• There is an urgent need for a sustained ceasefire and immediate unfettered
humanitarian access to the civilian population.
• There is a need to contain the situation to give additional time to enable solutions
to be found.
• There must be strengthened engagement with the civilian population.
• The question of foreign fighters needs to be squarely tackled.
• The provision of support to internationally proscribed terrorist groups needs to be
further restricted.
• Any use of force against internationally proscribed groups should be carefully
targeted.
• There could be serious exploration of a strengthened international presence with
the consent, of course, of the Syrian authorities.
• The combined resources of the international community need to come together.
Mr. President:

17. I appeal for an end to the hostilities. And I appeal to all for a serious international effort
to cooperate on Idlib. It is a humanitarian imperative. It is the way to have effective
counter-terrorism. It is in the interest of regional and international peace and security.
And it is an essential foundation for a sustainable path out of the Syrian conflict which is
now approaching its tenth year.

18. This Council recognized this when you unanimously agreed on Security Council
resolution 2254, which stipulated a nationwide ceasefire alongside a cooperative
approach to combatting terrorism, and for full respect of Syria’s sovereignty and a
credible and inclusive UN-facilitated political process. This remains the only path to end
this conflict. The major players and the Members of this Council need to put their full
weight behind this logic.

Thank you, Mr President.