UN Special Envoy for Syria, Geir Pedersen, said on Thursday the situation in the Arab country remains deeply fragile and the transition remains on a knife-edge, despite the decline in violence in the Sweida governorate.
Speaking via a video link at a Security Council meeting in New York, Pedersen said in the absence of more tangible and binding measures, including to build confidence, the ceasefire risks remain fragile.
He said Israeli ground operations in southwest Syria have continued. “Such actions are unacceptable. We must insist on full respect for Syria’s sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity, underscored by adherence to the 1974 Disengagement of Forces Agreement.”
Pedersen also showed that Israel’s airstrikes have subsided following the latest ceasefire.
In Sweida, he said, the ceasefire agreed on 19 July has come under strain, but—so far—has prevented a slide back into open conflict. He welcomed the efforts of the US, Jordan and the Syrian authorities in forming a trilateral working group to support the end of hostilities.
But the envoy said he was concerned that a month of relative military calm belies a worsening political climate, with escalatory and zero-sum rhetoric hardening among many.
Hundreds of people were killed in southern Syria's Sweida province following intense fighting between Druze fighters and Bedouin tribes before a ceasefire was reached.
Also, Pedersen welcomed a ministerial level meeting between Syria and Israel in Paris this week. “There is clear scope to address the issues diplomatically and without further confrontation,” he said.
The envoy said his briefing comes as Syrians mark the somber anniversary of the Ghouta chemical weapons attack of 2013 -- a painful reminder of the suffering endured by Syrian civilians, and of the grave abuses and violations of international law that must never be repeated.
He urged the Security Council to redouble its efforts toward accountability, protection of civilians, and renewed commitment to helping Syria emerge from a dark past towards a brighter future.
Pedersen then mentioned the publication of the decree that establishes a framework for holding indirect elections for two-thirds of the members of the interim People’s Assembly in Syria.
“Success in this process demands measures that ensure transparency and openness, and where all major Syrian groups – not just trusted individuals – are included as electors and candidates, with the equal and visible participation of women,” he said.
At the briefing, Emergency Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcher said amid the precarious military and political situation, 16 million Syrians across the country need humanitarian aid.
Additionally, he said, over 185,000 people have been displaced across Sweida, Daraa, Rural Damascus and beyond.
“The overall situation is dire. We need to sustain urgent delivery of food, health, shelter, clean water, fuel, restoration of water and electricity infrastructure, education. In some areas, those arriving now outnumber the existing population. Services are overwhelmed,” said Fletcher.
He noted that teams from the UN humanitarian aid coordination office (OCHA) have visited Sweida and other towns, delivering aid and assessing needs.
OCHA has also provided emergency food packages, flour and essential household items to tens of thousands of people.
However, insecurity and road closures have disrupted the supply of aid from the UN, NGO partners and the Syrian Arab Red Crescent.
“We need better humanitarian and commercial access. And most of all, we need safety,” Fletcher stressed, particularly referring to attacks on aid convoys, health facilities, medics and ambulances.
