Equipo Nizkor - UNSC S/2016/646 - Letter from the High Negotiations Committee of the Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces on the attacks carried out by Syria and Russia against Aleppo.

United Nations
Security Council

S/2016/646

Distr.: General
26 July 2016
Original: English

Letter dated 25 July 2016 from the Permanent Representative of Saudi Arabia to the United Nations addressed to the President of the Security Council

I have the honour to transmit to you a letter from the Special Representative of the Syrian National Coalition to the United Nations, Najib Ghadbian, dated 25 July 2016 (see annex).

I would be grateful if you could circulate the present letter and its annex as a document of the Security Council.

(Signed) Abdallah Y. Al-Mouallimi
Permanent Representative

Annex to the letter dated 25 July 2016 from the Permanent Representative of Saudi Arabia to the United Nations addressed to the President of the Security Council

On behalf of the High Negotiations Committee, and as requested by the General Coordinator of the Committee, Riad Hijab, it is my honour to transmit to you a letter sent to the Secretary-General from Mr. Hijab on 25 July 2016 (see enclosure), in which Mr. Hijab discusses the gravity of continued violations on the city of Aleppo.

(Signed) Najib Ghadbian
Special Representative of the Syrian National Coalition
to the United Nations

Enclosure 1

[Original: Arabic]

I write further to my previous letters on the catastrophic situation of the Syrian people, which is trapped between the hammer of Assad and Russia and the anvil of Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant. It is with great pain and sorrow that I convey this sad and disturbing news from Aleppo, which is now facing a barbaric attack from the Assad forces and Iran with intensive air cover from the Russian air force.

For over two weeks, the regime, Russia and Iran have been relentlessly closing in on the city and forcing the civilian population to flee. Entire neighbourhoods have collapsed on their inhabitants. Concomitantly, an attempt is being made to besiege the city from north to south. The humanitarian situation, which was already horrific, has become even worse. Over 400,000 civilians are falling victim to hunger and destitution, not to mention the medical situation facing the city.

On 24 July 2016, attacks from the Assad regime and Russia destroyed and put out of commission the six remaining hospitals in the city, as though the Assad forces and Russia wanted to sentence the Syrian people to certain death. Those who are not gunned down or firebombed from the air are to die of hunger, thirst and lack of health care or medical attention.

Security Council resolution 2286 (2016) stresses that medical facilities must be protected and cannot become targets. It urges States to ensure that those responsible for such violations do not operate with impunity, and that they are brought to justice. Yet today, hospitals and medical facilities are being deliberately and systematically destroyed. This is being done blatantly, in open defiance of Security Council resolution 2286 (2016), which the Council adopted unanimously. When will the resolutions of the Security Council be respected, and when will violators be punished?

We have said in the past that the United Nations does not want to hear the voice of a people that has been suffering for five years — a people that you have left to face death and destruction from all forms of weapon and the most repressive and inhumane tactics in human history. Nevertheless, we call on you once again to uphold the protection of civilians. There is no people on the face of the Earth that needs protection more than the heroic people of Syria.

(Signed) Riad Hijab
General Coordinator of the High Negotiations Committee of the
Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces

Enclosure 2

[Original: Arabic]

Targeting of health centres and hospitals in Aleppo and Idlib

Aleppo:

The Russian and Syrian air forces have carried out a series of air strikes on medical facilities, putting most of the hospitals in Aleppo city out of commission. Over 200,000 besieged civilians now face an acute shortage of health-care services. The following hospitals have been hit over the last five days:

The field hospital in Kafr Hamra, the Umar ibn Abdul'aziz hospital, the Al-Hakim hospital (paediatrics), the Al-Zahra' hospital (gynaecology), the Al-Bayan hospital (surgery), the Al-Daqqaq hospital, the Atarib hospital and the blood bank.

https://youtu.be/zjpigwu4VYA
https://youtu.be/088zkcm-zh8
https://youtu.be/i3YG8xbCc7U

Idlib:

Numerous health-care centres and major hospitals in Idlib city.
https://youtu.be/EUV3c1-5RpQ

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26Jul16

Letter from the High Negotiations Committee of the Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces on the attacks carried out by Syria and Russia against Aleppo