*Syrian Ambassador to the United Nations, Dr. Bashar al-Ja’afari (image from Syrianews.cc)
..It’s about 23 million Syrians besieged, by economic sanctions, by terrorists crossing from Turkey, from Jordan, from Lebanon, from Iraq. This is the reality. The whole Syrian people are besieged.”
Syria’s Ambassador to the UN, Dr. Bashar al-Ja’afari, from 3:05:
“Certain Security Countil members are ignoring the root causes of the humanitarian suffering in Syria, which are the terrorist acts committed by ISIS, al-Nusra Front, Jaysh al-Islam, Ahrar al-Sham, al-Fateh army, and the Islamic Front, and other affiliated terrorist groups.
…Whenever the Syrian army re-takes an area from terrorist groups, or the Syrian side reaches a reconciliation agreement the humanitarian situation in such areas improves immediately.
The Syrian government has already requested, through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, from the office of resident coordinator of the United Nations in Syria, by its note #3746, dated 27th December, 27 December, 2015, to URGENTLY deliver humanitarian assistance, including medical assistance and fuel, to al-#Foua and #Kafraya, in the governorate of Idlib, and to #Madaya, in the governorate of Damascus countryside.
We would like to highlight that the humanitarian assistance sent to Madaya in mid-October was sufficient for two months. And this testimony was corroborated by the representative of the ICRC in Syria a few days ago.
So there is no shortage of humanitarian assistance in Madaya.
The Syrian government aproved the requests of the resident coordinator of Unicef, WFP and ICRC to deliver humanitarian and relief assistance, including medical assistance, to Madaya, al-Foua and Kafraya, on 8 January, 2016.
…The Syrian government previously approved the requests of the United Nations and ICRC to deliver humanitarian assistance to #Zabadani, Madaya, al-Foua and Kafraya on 18 October, 2015. We would like to add here that some of the humanitarian assistance sent to restive areas has been looted by the armed terrorist groups on several occassions. And this is exactly what happened in Madaya and al-Zabadani.
Furthermore, the Turkish authorities hindered the delivery of humanitarian assistance through the borders to other restive areas.
The information concerning the humanitarian situation in Madaya is based on false information, and totally ignores the deterioration of the humanitarian situation in other areas besieged by armed terrorist groups. The reality of the so-called besieged, hard to reach areas is that some of those areas are controled by terrorist groups who are using civilians as human shields, and other areas are be-sieged from the terrorist groups who are preventing the delivery of humanitarian assistance.
Meaning that the terrorist armed groups are two categories. One category is exerting, besieging on the civilians from within inside. And the other category is exerting, besieging from outside.
In Kafraya and al-Foua, the terorrists are besieging the two towns from outside, surrounding the two towns, in Idlib..
But in Madaya and al-Zabadani, the terrorists are inside. So they are using the civilians as human shields while they are inside.
It is bewildering that whenever there is a step forward towards a political solution in Syria, certain incidents are fabricated to de-fame the Syrian government and to negatively impact the political process….
The examples of such incidents are many and happened before certain United Nations Security Council meetings, as well as before Geneva 2 meeting, and Moscow 1 and Moscow 2 consultative meetings.
Now, and when the Syrians are going to meet in Geneva, end of this month, certain regional and international parties supporting terrorism in Syria are not satisfied that the Syrian government is engaging positively in the political process. And thus are trying to demonize it…. torpedoing the meeting in Geneva. And this is what we have here today, eminating from Paris, after a meeting between the French President of the Republic and a representative of one faction of the opposition.
The Syrian government…approved on December 21st, 2015, the delivery of humanitarian assistance to Bloudan, in Damascus countryside. Bloudan is an adjacent town to Madaya and al-Zabadani. And to al-Salamia, Mharda, Herbinafso, al-Saboura, and al-Scaypia in the governorate of Hama. The Syrian government identical letters containing replies about the Secretary General monthly report on the implementation of Security Council Resolutions 2139, 2165, and 2191 contained details about the cooperation and facilitations offered by the Syrian government to deliver humanitarian assistance to all areas without any discrimination. I would strongly advise you to go back to these official letters. All of them have been circulated as official documents eminating from the Security Council. …”
at 12:45 journalist (al Jazeera) asks if the reports of starving people are fabrications.
Dr. al-Ja’afari: “Yes, indeed, and the main responsible for these fabrications is your own channel, Al Jazeera, and Al Arabiya….Your channel is mainly responsible for fabricating these, for these allegations and lies.
Today, 65 trucks entered Madaya, al-Zabadani and Kafraya and al-Foua. 65 trucks of humanitarian assistance, including medical supplies…”
“We asked the United Nations resident coordinator, first of all, we sent together, the Syrian government, together with ICRC and OCHA, on October 18th, humanitarian assistance capable of responding to the needs for more than 2 months. The representative of the ICRC in Syria, in Damascus, appeared on Syrian TV (of course he would not appear on Al Jazeera, you would not call him on Al Jazeera). On October the 18th, we sent enough humanitarian assistance for more than 2 months, and the representative of the ICRC corroborated this 2 days ago on Syrian TV saying that there is no starvation problem in Madaya. This is October 18th.
December 27th, we asked the resident coordinator to send immediately convoys of humanitarian assistance again to Madaya, and to Kafraya and al-Foua. The UN did not send. When we asked them why you didn’t, they said ‘we were facing logistical problems. We are not responsible of this.’
…The main problem is that the armed terorrist groups steal the convoys and trucks, and they deviate them to their own warehouses and storage. And then they re-sell it to civilians at prohibitve prices that the civilians cannot afford it.
There is a problem, yes. But the problem is this. The terorrists are stealing the humanitarian assistance from the Syrian Red Crescent as well as from the United Nations, and they are keeping this assistance in their warehouse, and then they use it as a leverage of political and financial gain for them to survive.”
“Those who are besieged are all the Syrians. We are talking about Syria being besieged by enemies, by criminals, by murderers, by hostile governments targeting the whole Syrian people.
…It’s about 23 million Syrians besieged, by economic sanctions, by terrorists crossing from Turkey, from Jordan, from Lebanon, from Iraq. This is the reality. The whole Syrian people are besieged.”
**
RELATED:
-Propaganda alert: Madaya media fabrications; recycled photos, In Gaza
-First aid convoys enter besieged Syrian town of Madaya , Jan 11, 2016, Russia Today
-interview with journalist Vanessa Beeley on Madaya and media lies
On Kafarya Alfoua:
– Untold Suffering in Foua and Kafarya: Two Northwestern Syrian Villages Under Siege and Assault by NATO’s Terrorists, Aug 18, 2015, Counter Punch
-Part 2 Untold Suffering in Foua and Kafarya, Aug 20, 2015, Counter PunchFiled under: Ambassador al-Ja'afari, media lies, Syria