World

U.N. Approves First Military Observers to Monitor Syria Cease-Fire

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The U.N. Security Council voted unanimously on Saturday to deploy the first wave of U.N. military observers to monitor a fragile cease-fire between the Syrian government and opposition fighters.

The vote marked the first time U.N. diplomats on the council all agreed on a resolution since the conflict began more than a year ago.

It calls on both sides to immediately “cease all armed violence in all its forms.” It also calls on the Syrian government to implement the six-point peace plan put forward by international envoy Kofi Annan, including the pull-back of troops and heavy weapons from cities and town.

The resolution calls for the deployment of an advance team of up to 30 unarmed military observers to initiate contacts with both sides and begin to report on whether there has been “a full cessation of armed violence in all its forms by all parties.”

The council said it intends to immediately establish a larger U.N. supervision mission after consultations between Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and the Syrian government.

Deployment of a larger force will be “subject to a sustained cessation of armed violence in all its forms by all parties.”

Annan’s spokesman, Ahmad Fawzi, has said that Annan – who is an envoy on behalf of the U.N. and the Arab League – envisions a mission with about 250 observers.

Russia and China vetoed two previous resolutions that would have condemned President Bashar Assad’s government for its bloody crackdown on protesters and raised the threat of possible further action.

They argued that the resolutions were not balanced and didn’t address the attacks by rebel fighters.

In the debate on the resolution adopted Saturday, Russia submitted a rival text to the U.S. and Western-backed draft, and raised questions Friday evening about the final draft. But Ambassador Vitaly Churkin told reporters before Saturday’s vote that Moscow “was satisfied” and would vote “yes.”

The cease-fire, which formally took effect Thursday, is at the center of Annan’s peace plan, which is aimed at ending more than a year of bloodshed that has killed over 9,000 people, according to the United Nations, and to launch inclusive Syrian-led talks on the country’s political future.

Annan called for speedy deployment of U.N. monitors and his spokesman Ahmad Fawzi told a news conference in Geneva on Friday that an advance team of “around 10 or 12” observers, that could quickly be increased to 30, was “standing by to board planes and to get themselves on the ground as soon as possible” once the Security Council approved their deployment.

Comments (34)

  • dmerwin
    Posted on April 15, 2012 at 11:29am

    What a joke. Unarmed observers, they can’t even defend themselves. The UN needs to pull it‘s collective head out of it’s donkey. A group of targets. Beirut 1982.

    Report Post » dmerwin  
    • nzkiwi
      Posted on April 16, 2012 at 5:27am

      And I might add that, in my opinion, of all the conniving, thieving rats in that organisation, Kofi Annan is the worst.

      The only reason that he is involved, in my opinion, is because his twitching little rodent nose smells money.

      Report Post »  
    • nzkiwi
      Posted on April 16, 2012 at 7:33am

      For some reasonmy first reply was lost. Tried to repost it a couple of times. I don’t suppose it matters that much; it was a rant about the UN.

      Report Post »  
  • EP46
    Posted on April 15, 2012 at 7:41am

    Now tell me again why we spent millions and millions in Lybia and killed Gaddafi while sitting around for a year and letting Assad kill unknown thousands of innocent people? Just trying to make sure we understand were our money and weapons are being used. Is it the same old obama supporting his friends like Assad while destroying Gaddafi who would not go along with the Muslim Brotherhood ?

    Report Post »  
  • ALL4FREEDOM
    Posted on April 14, 2012 at 10:31pm

    I certainly don’t wish that the 30 military observers come to any harm, but it would be absolutely classic if they got shot. Leave it to the Untied Nations to send unarmed soldiers into a war zone.

    Report Post »  
  • possom
    Posted on April 14, 2012 at 8:00pm

    Draft the ows and lib’s, send them over there they can start their own country. And the bonus is no american blood will be spilt!

    Report Post » possom  
    • DEFCON4
      Posted on April 14, 2012 at 9:03pm

      @POSSOM, Occupy Syria , you might be on to something.

      Report Post » DEFCON4  
  • zoro51
    Posted on April 14, 2012 at 3:37pm

    u so sure cease fire in syria will occur.. MUSLUMS care3 NOT they desire to KILL its what they LIVE FOR.. they are in a murderious man made cult of hate n death they will strap a bomb ot a new born in thier name of thier false stone idol god allah n use that to KILL many n expect heaven.. NEWS FLASH HELL AWAITS ALL MUSLUMS… for a cease fire to really take effect.. u must rid the nation of muslums.. ONLY then can there be a cease fore.. fact n truth sad as it is.. MUSLUMS dont care whom they kill save that they kill….. FACT N PROOF

    Report Post » zoro51  
    • Ruler4You
      Posted on April 14, 2012 at 4:01pm

      U.N. approves first Military observers in Syria.

      That didn’t take long. Only 15 months. See. The Libya thing that took only a few months was a fluke. Of course the NATO action probably provoked early U.N. support.

      Report Post » Ruler4You  
  • thegreatcarnac
    Posted on April 14, 2012 at 3:10pm

    The UN is nothing. I don’t care about Syria. Who knows which side you should be for when talking about muslims? Look at the “Egyptian Spring”. We stood by and even aided the Muslim Brotherhood get rid of a dictator who was basically on our side for a worse group of radicals. To hell with the UN. They have too much power. Let Syria fight it out until someone wins. Obama is a fool.

    Report Post »  
  • flsnipe
    Posted on April 14, 2012 at 2:26pm

    The UN they will haul butt at the first sign of trouble or when they can’t extort any more from either side. What country is going to supply the troops, France?

    Report Post » flsnipe  
  • hoss_cartwright
    Posted on April 14, 2012 at 2:10pm

    all the civilians there have been killed already!

    Report Post » hoss_cartwright  
  • hoss_cartwright
    Posted on April 14, 2012 at 2:08pm

    a little late,no?(1,000+ casualties a month ago.is there any civilians left there?)

    Report Post » hoss_cartwright  
  • SilentReader
    Posted on April 14, 2012 at 2:07pm

    UN criminals monitoring criminals! Well, I‘m sure that’s going to turn out well!

    The UN should be dismantled and defunded and their building in America turned into a parking lot! We’d all be better off! Then I’d recommend prosecuting all their global manipulators who sit on their unaccountable thrones judging others when they are the instigators of the violence throughout the world, and aiding and abetting it!

    How many years has it been since 911 now? And the Nazi and fascist-founded hijacked-by-the-OIC UN still haven’t come up with the definition of terrorism! And Obama et al has scrubbed all reference to Islamic terrorism in their “Homeland Security” institutions of ill repute in America where they see no evil let alone stop it! And that SOA Islamic killer of our troops at Fort Hood did it because of “workplace” violence!

    Ah, yes. The UN thugs monitoring thugs sounds like an absolutely terrific idea! I‘m sure we’ll get down to the bottom of it now! Just as they got rid of one thug Gadhafi and replaced him with another thug al Qaeda where their black flags of no-tolerance are flying over the buildings in Libya now! Just as they got rid of Mubarak in Egypt and now the “freedom and justice Party” the Muslim Brotherhood no-tolerance thugs who gave birth to al Qaeda and the Hamas are ruling it now! The Muslim Brotherhood who are far more dangerous than any terrorist arm that they have created because they are after the same thing that their paid mercen

    Report Post » SilentReader  
    • rose-ellen
      Posted on April 14, 2012 at 4:10pm

      The muslim brotherhood are anti colonialist freedom fighters. prior to european zionism and western imposed colonial divisons and proxy dictators-the 3 faiths lived in arabic speaking lands together. you are rewiriting a false narrative about muslim brotherhood, and islam as well as zionism. Syria is ruled by a secular nazi like regime and we should be aiding the people to topple such a regime.the muslim brotherhood deserves a place in a parliamentary free egypt. the world and its peoples do not have to subcribe to our american secualar value system. You can demonize muslim brotherhod all you want-they are part of the fabric of muslim lands in a post colonial and post dictatoship mid east..we don’t help free sysria cause the zionists like having assad there.The last thing zionists want are free arabs.

      Report Post »  
    • The Gooch
      Posted on April 14, 2012 at 8:39pm

      I’m confused, Rose Ellen. Are you for or against self-determination?

      Report Post »  
    • Puddle Duck
      Posted on April 15, 2012 at 12:49am

      I see the resident bigot and serial racis crack pot trollt has decided to open her gaping maw once again at the Blaze for all to see…..My God Smellin your rant reads like a page out of Mein Kampf.People like YOU Rose Ellen and those that spread these lies ARE the problem.

      Report Post » Puddle Duck  
  • FloridaFarmGirl
    Posted on April 14, 2012 at 1:29pm

    I hope no US tax dollars are used here!! Let them kill themselves, that’s all these countries do. None of our business, fix America first!!! Mind our own business.

    Report Post »  
    • blanco5
      Posted on April 14, 2012 at 1:43pm

      Ron Paul agrees!

      Report Post »  
    • Stoic one
      Posted on April 14, 2012 at 1:44pm

      Yes, no more US tax dollars to the UN.
      No more foreign aid. Any future aid on a country by country basis.

      Report Post » Stoic one  
    • skiz
      Posted on April 14, 2012 at 2:02pm

      Agree and I hope NONE of our troops are used as well.
      @BLANCO5~ I’m so tired of Ron Paul I could just spit.
      Greeting from Tallahassee @FARMGIRL

      Report Post » skiz  
    • blanco5
      Posted on April 14, 2012 at 2:17pm

      Skiz—I am so sorry you cannot see past your media influenced hatred towards the only presidential candidate even mentioning the Constitution! I am so sick and tired of hearing how obamney is their choice b/c he’s not as much of a communist as the current one.

      Report Post »  
    • flsnipe
      Posted on April 14, 2012 at 2:29pm

      Its all us tax dollars always is no one else pays into it.

      Report Post » flsnipe  
    • skiz
      Posted on April 14, 2012 at 4:59pm

      @BLANCO5 ~ First of all I would like to mention that my eyesite is so cloudy from my media influenced hatred towards Ron Paul that I can barely see to type (I assure you the media has NO inluence on me).
      Second of all I really appreciate Ron Paul getting the constitution speak in the mix, but you guys think his name belongs in every sentence you speak and it just gets boring.
      Example: These eggs taste great, but Ron Paul would make them taste better.
      The sky is blue, but Ron Paul would make it more blue. etc… it’s never ending!
      I do not like any of the candidates we have been given. No one , not even Ron Paul, is going to get things done the way WE THE PEOPLE want! We are still waiting for a George Washington!
      But Romney, unfortunately, is the only one we have left to get rid of obama so that is who we have to go with. Next election I hope a true constitutionalist conservative appears and sets us on the RIGHT path. God Bless!

      Report Post » skiz  
    • dmerwin
      Posted on April 15, 2012 at 2:45pm

      Exactly, in fact I would support the Perry plan of ZERO foreign aide, for anyone, and let them make the case for it each year. PLO broke, Egypt broke.

      Report Post » dmerwin  
  • Snowleopard {gallery of cat folks}
    Posted on April 14, 2012 at 1:21pm

    So it looks like the Useless Nation has finally gotten its act togeather after a solid year? And are the Russians to be the monitors? Or will Obama the Ronin and Gai Jin use this to cause another war?

    Report Post » Snowleopard {gallery of cat folks}  
  • Mark0331
    Posted on April 14, 2012 at 1:12pm

    And the UN observers will be observed by the ‘New Soviet Unions’ special forces…will the UN send in armed troops to help quell the conflict after the ‘Soviets’ told the world to leave it alone?…Higly doubt the Soviets are kidding.

    Report Post » Mark0331  
  • heavyduty
    Posted on April 14, 2012 at 12:47pm

    Yeah, that’s going to go over real big. Getting the cat to watch the mouse.

    Report Post »  
  • SpankDaMonkey
    Posted on April 14, 2012 at 12:43pm

    .
    I think we should send about 50,000 of our brand new “Don‘t Ask Don’t Tell” Gay Soldiers over there to be the observers. Issue all of them a Bubble Gun and a R.O.E. to make it the Gayest Place on Earth…..

    Report Post » SpankDaMonkey  
    • The Gooch
      Posted on April 14, 2012 at 1:01pm

      Ah, you forget: You can ask and you can tell. That is one wild picture you paint. I suspect the Syrians as a whole would be stunned into inactivity for about 15 minutes… and then dogpile on the Rainbow Raiders.

      Report Post »  
    • msconstrue
      Posted on April 14, 2012 at 1:05pm

      glitter bombs!!!!!

      Report Post »  
    • spirited
      Posted on April 14, 2012 at 4:04pm

      Ride in mardi gras style.
      –Talk about some shock and awe.
      It would be especially impactful if a rainbow appeard;

      >during the hand grenade toss.

      Report Post » spirited  
  • The Gooch
    Posted on April 14, 2012 at 12:36pm

    In other news, somewhere another group of fools was also found to be p!ssing in the wind.

    The Syrian govt. will control who is where and what is seen. Nice token effort, U.N.

    Report Post »  
    • Puddle Duck
      Posted on April 15, 2012 at 1:03am

      According to Roe Smellin the ones pulling Assad’s strings are the Zionists…..

      Report Post » Puddle Duck  

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