Equipo Nizkor - S/2016/847 - Draft resolution tabled by Russia on Syria.

United Nations
Security Council

S/2016/847

Distr.: General
8 October 2016
Original: English

Russian Federation: draft resolution

The Security Council,

Recalling its resolutions 2042 (2012), 2043 (2012), 2118 (2013), 2139 (2014), 2165 (2014), 2175 (2014), 2191 (2014), 2209 (2015), 2254 (2015), 2258 (2015) and 2268 (2016),

Reaffirming its strong commitment to the sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity of Syria, and to the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations,

Gravely distressed by the continued deterioration of the devastating humanitarian situation in Syria, and the fact that now more than 13.5 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance in Syria, and that about 6.1 million people are internally displaced (in addition to the half a million Palestinian refugees who had settled in Syria), several hundred thousands of people are suffering in besieged areas,

Expressing outrage at the unacceptable and escalating level of violence and at the intensified fighting in recent days in Aleppo,

Strongly condemning the increased terrorist attacks resulting in numerous casualties and destruction carried out by Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as Daesh), Al Nusrah Front (ANF) and all other individuals, groups, undertakings and entities associated with Al Qaeda or ISIL (also known as Daesh), and other terrorist groups, as designated by the Security Council, and reiterating its call on all parties to commit to putting an end to terrorist acts perpetrated by such organizations and individuals while reaffirming that terrorism in all its forms constitutes one of the most serious threats to international peace and security, and that any acts of terrorism are criminal and unjustifiable, regardless of their motivation, wherever, whenever, and by whomsoever committed,

Noting with appreciation the efforts undertaken by the Russian Federation and the United States of America as co-chairs of the International Syria Support Group,

Reiterating that the only sustainable solution to the current crisis in the Syrian Arab Republic is through an inclusive and Syrian-led political process based on the Geneva Communique of 30 June 2012 as endorsed by resolution 2118 (2013), its resolutions 2254 (2015) and 2268 (2016) and relevant statements of the International Syria Support Group,

Gravely concerned at the lack of effective implementation of its resolutions 2139 (2014), 2165 (2014), and 2191 (2014) and 2258 (2016) and recalling in this regard the legal obligations of all parties under international humanitarian law and international human rights law, as well as all the relevant decisions of the Security Council, including by ceasing all attacks against civilians and civilian objects, including those involving attacks on schools, medical facilities and the deliberate interruptions of water supply, the indiscriminate use of weapons, including artillery, barrel bombs and air strikes, indiscriminate shelling by mortars, car bombs, suicide attacks and tunnel bombs, as well as the use of starvation of civilians as a method of combat, including by the besiegement of populated areas, and the widespread use of torture, ill-treatment, arbitrary executions, extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances, sexual and gender -based violence, as well as all grave violations and abuses committed against children,

Taking note of the decision of the Secretary-General to establish an internal United Nations Board of Inquiry on the incident involving bombing of a United Nations-Syrian Arab Red Crescent relief operation to Urum al-Kubra, Syria, on 19 September 2016, and urging all parties concerned to cooperate fully with the Board and underlining the importance of completing the investigation without delay with a view to hold the perpetrators accountable,

Strongly condemning the widespread violations and abuses of human rights and violations of international humanitarian law, stressing the need to end impunity for these violations and abuses, and re-emphasizing in this regard the need that those who have committed or are otherwise responsible for such violations and crimes in Syria must be brought to justice,

Emphasizing that the humanitarian situation in Syria continues to constitute a threat to peace and security in the region, and will continue to deteriorate further in the absence of a political solution to the crisis, and stressing in this regard that there is no military solution to the conflict in Syria,

Reaffirming its intent, expressed in its resolution 2258 (2015) to take further measures in the event of non-compliance with resolutions 2139 (2014), 2165 (2014) and 2191 (2014),

Recalling that Member States are obligated under Article 25 of the Charter of the United Nations to accept and carry out the Council's decisions,

1. Demands that all parties to the Syrian conflict, in particular the Syrian authorities, immediately comply with their obligations under international humanitarian law and international human rights law as applicable, in particular in all besieged and hard-to-reach areas, and fully and immediately implement all the provisions of Security Council resolutions 2139 (2014), 2165 (2014), 2191 (2014), 2199 (2015), 2254 (2015), 2258 (2015) and 2268 (2016), and recalls that violations and abuses committed in Syria shall not go unpunished;

2. Notes the Agreement between the Russian Federation and the United States of America of 9 September 2016 (Annex) and calls upon all parties to be guided by the aforementioned Agreement, including for the purpose of providing immediate and unhindered humanitarian access, in particular through weekly 48-hour humanitarian pauses, and urges the co-chairs of the International Syria Support Group to ensure the implementation of this Agreement;

3. Urges immediate implementation of the cessation of hostilities, in particular in Aleppo, stresses that any party can bring a violation or potential violation of the cessation of hostilities to the attention of the Cessation of Hostilities Task Force, and further urges immediate, safe and unhindered humanitarian access throughout Syria consistent with the terms of the cessation of hostilities;

4. Stresses the urgent need to achieve and verify separating moderate opposition forces from "Jabhat Al-Nusra" as a key priority and demands that all parties prevent material and financial support from reaching individuals, groups, undertakings and entities associated with Al Qaeda, ISIL (also known as Daesh) or "Jabhat al-Nusra", and other terrorist groups, as designated by the Security Council, and urges members of the ISSG to demand from any party to stop fighting in collaboration with them, to separate from them and to formally subscribe to the Cessation of Hostilities;

5. Demands all parties to comply with United Nations requests for humanitarian access by observing the cessation of hostilities as described in resolution 2268 (2016) and the Agreement of 9 September, 2016, including with regard to the pullback from Castello Road and establishing checkpoints on that road, and to facilitate evacuation of urgent medical cases and also to use for humanitarian and medical purposes the Suleiman al Halabi corridor between Eastern and Western Aleppo;

6. Welcomes the initiative of the Special Envoy of the Secretary-General on Syria of 6 October 2016 on normalizing the situation in Aleppo and requests the Secretary-General to present to the Security Council a detailed plan for its implementation in cooperation with interested parties for the purpose of the endorsement by the Security Council;

7. Reiterates that the only sustainable solution to the current crisis in Syria is through an inclusive and Syrian-led political process that meets the legitimate aspirations of the Syrian people, with a view to full implementation of the Geneva Communique of 30 June 2012 as endorsed by resolution 2118 (2013), as well as full implementation of resolutions 2254 (2015) and 2268 (2016) while acting simultaneously and without preconditions on political, humanitarian and counterterrorism parallel tracks;

8. Deplores the protracted delay in all-Syrian political process, demands to bring to immediate end further postponement of inclusive negotiations and expresses in this regard its fullest support for the Special Envoy's efforts towards a full implementation of resolution 2254 and urges all parties to the Syrian conflict to cooperate constructively, without preconditions and in good faith with the Special Envoy to this end in his efforts aimed at an early resumption of the intra-Syrian political dialogue, and reaffirms that the future of Syria should be decided by the Syrians themselves;

9. Requests further the Secretary-General to report to the Council in due course on the implementation of this resolution by all parties to the Syrian conflict;

10. Decides to remain actively seized of the matter.

Annex

Reducing Violence, Restoring Access and Establishing the JIC

Geneva, 9 September 2016

The Russian Federation and the United States (hereafter — "the Sides") intend to undertake joint efforts to stabilize the situation in Syria, with special measures for the Aleppo region. Delineation of territories controlled by ISIL, "Jabhat Al -Nusra", and moderate armed opposition forces remains a key priority, as does separating moderate opposition forces from Nusra.

The Sides will designate a date and time at which the following measures will go into effect (designated as "Day D").

1. On Day D, all parties to the cessation of hostilities (CoH) in Syria will recommit to the CoH and honour its terms in full, as set forth in the February 22, 2016 Joint Declaration of the Russian Federation and the United States, for a 48-hour period. In particular, these terms include: ceasing all attacks with any weapons, including aerial bombardments, rockets, mortars, and anti-tank guided missiles; refraining from acquiring or seeking to acquire territory from other parties to the CoH; allowing humanitarian agencies rapid, safe, unhindered and sustained access throughout areas under their operational control and allowing immediate humanitarian assistance to reach all people in need; employing proportionate use of force (i.e. no greater than required to address an immediate threat) if and when responding in self-defence. The Sides will agree and inform all parties as to the date and time for Day D.

2. On D+2, if the CoH in Syria has continued to hold to the mutual satisfaction of the Sides, they will extend it for a mutually agreed upon period of time. Subsequently, the Sides may decide to extend the CoH indefinitely, under the same terms. The Sides will use their influence with the parties to fully honour the terms of the CoH.

3. Special measures will also go into effect for the Castello Road area in Aleppo (as defined by mutually determined coordinates), specifically:

a. Beginning Day D, and even prior to the establishment of checkpoints on the Castello road, humanitarian assistance will be delivered consistent with the terms of the CoH and established UN procedures, and in coordination with relevant UN representatives. At the Turkish border, the UN Monitoring Mission (UNMM) will continue to inspect and seal the trucks designated for delivery of humanitarian assistance via Castello Road to Eastern Aleppo. The seals will not be broken and the trucks will not be opened by any authority between the point of their review and sealing in Turkey and the point of their unloading at UN and its partners' warehouses in east and west Aleppo.

b. The Syrian Arab Red Crescent (SARC) (or another agreed upon third party) will operate as soon as possible two checkpoints (at agreed upon locations) to verify that, until UNOPS checkpoints are established as described in this very paragraph below, only trucks inspected by the UNMM are transiting the road, and that the seals have not been broken. A small detachment of no more than twenty armed personnel per shift provided by, and mutually acceptable to, the government and opposition forces, will provide security for the SARC personnel at the checkpoints on the western and eastern ends of the Castello Road, respectively. The UN will monitor (by physical presence or remotely) the activities of all personnel at the checkpoints. These SARC-manned checkpoints and physical security for them will be handed over to independent, international personnel under the direction of UNOPS (or another agreed upon third party), as soon as they can be deployed. These internationally managed checkpoints will provide for the phased-in unrestricted movement of all humanitarian, commercial and civilian traffic on Castello Road, as well as the non-use of the road for the transport of weapons (in accordance with procedures to be developed). Phasing will proceed as quickly as possible, when those managing the checkpoints assess, in consultation with the UN and the Sides, that they have the capabilities to accommodate the traffic in a safe and orderly manner.

c. Simultaneous with the establishment of the SARC or another agreed upon third party checkpoints indicated in 3 (b), pro-government forces and opposition units will pull back simultaneously from Castello Road, and the vacated area will be considered a "demilitarized zone."

Specifically, pro-government forces will:

Pull back heavy weapons such as armoured fighting vehicles and infantry fighting vehicles (other than BTR-60 and BMP-1 without ATGM), tanks, artillery, and mortars, to a distance of 3,500 m north of the road;
Pull back crew-served machine guns, BTR-60 and BMP-1 without ATGM to a distance of 2,500 m north of the road;
Pull back all personnel, other than those present at two observation posts, to a distance of 1,000 m north of the road armed with only small arms or light machine guns;
On the south side of the road, pull back all personnel, weapons and equipment to a distance of 500 m from the road;
Establish up to two observation posts no less than 500 m north of Castello road. The locations will be mutually agreed upon, depending on terrain, with a staff of up to 15 persons equipped with small arms only for self-defence and observation equipment;
Not impede any humanitarian, civilian and commercial traffic transiting Castello Road; and
Not occupy areas that opposition groups vacate or set up positions in the demilitarized zone, other than the observation posts.

Opposition forces will simultaneously undertake the following actions:

On the eastern end of Castello Road on the agreed-upon map (to be determined), the opposition will operate depending on the actions of the Kurdish militia units: if the Kurds are present north of Castello Road, the opposition will remain in place; if the Kurds pull back 500 m south of Castello Road, the vacated area will be considered to be demilitarized and the opposition groups will pull back 500 m north of the road;
On the western end of Castello Road (on the line of contact extending north from the Castello shopping complex), the opposition pullback will be conducted analogous to the withdrawal of pro-government forces enumerated above;
Opposition groups located in the 31/15 quadrant of the Russian-provided map, to the north of the Castello shopping complex, will pull back heavy weapons such as armoured armoured fighting vehicles and infantry fighting vehicles (other than BTR-60 and BMP-1 without ATGM), tanks, artillery, and mortars, to a distance of 3,000 m north; pull back crew-served machine guns, BTR-60 and BMP-1 without ATGM to a distance of 2,500 m north; pull back all personnel to a distance of 1,000 m north with only small arms or light machine guns;
Along the portion of the road that runs from the Castello shopping complex to near the Layramoun Circle, the opposition groups will pull back personnel and weapons to 500 m north of Castello Road. This mirrors the pullback of pro-regime forces to 500 m south of the Castello Road between those points;
Not impede any humanitarian, civilian and commercial traffic transiting Castello Road;
Will not occupy areas that pro-regime forces vacate or set up positions in the demilitarized zone, other than the observation posts; and

The opposition will make every effort to prevent Nusra forces from advancing into the demilitarized zone from opposition-held areas adjacent to it.

d. Any Syrians can leave Aleppo via Castello Road, including armed opposition forces with their weapons, with the understanding that no harm will come to them and they can choose their destination. Opposition forces leaving Aleppo with weapons must coordinate ahead of time with UN representatives as to the time they will be using Castello Road and the number of personnel and weapons and military equipment departing. It is also understood that no harm will come to civilians or to opposition forces who abide by the CoH and who choose to remain in Aleppo.

e. Any reported violations of the demilitarized zone by any party will be addressed by the United States and Russia. In the event of a penetration of the demilitarized zone by fighters from Nusra after the JIC has been established, the United States and Russia will act in accordance with the provisions of the JIC Terms of Reference (ToR).

f. On Day D, both pro -government forces and opposition groups in the Ramouseh gap will provide safe, unhindered and sustainable humanitarian access to eastern and western Aleppo. They will also facilitate unrestricted movement of all commercial and civilian traffic on the Khan Tuman Road in the Ramouseh Gap in coordination with the UN and establish a monitoring mechanism to be agreed to by the Sides and the UN as soon as possible to ensure access is unimpeded. For this purpose, technical teams from the Sides and the UN will convene by Day D+4. The delivery of humanitarian assistance will be consistent with the terms of the CoH and established UN procedures, and in coordination with relevant UN representatives. Neither the opposition groups nor pro-government forces will launch attacks within the area indicated in the attached map, and according to the corresponding geo-coordinates (hereinafter referred to as the "area"). Neither the opposition groups nor pro-government forces will attempt to acquire new territory from the other in the "area".

4. The Sides will confirm to each other that the Syrian government and opposition have agreed to adhere to the applicable obligations in the JIC's ToR, including with respect to the Designated Areas (per geo-coordinates agreed upon by the Sides) where Syrian military aircraft cannot operate, except for agreed non-combat flights, and where the Sides will develop targets for action against Nusra.

5. The Sides will announce the establishment of the JIC, on the basis of the ToR and Designated Areas agreed by the Sides, once measures in paragraphs 1 -4 above (with exception of the deployment of UNOPS checkpoints and associated movement of commercial and civilian traffic on the Castello Road and the implementation of the monitoring mechanism referenced in paragraph 3 f) have been implemented to their mutual satisfaction, including at least seven continuous days of adherence to the CoH.

Ref A — Annex

The Sides will commence preparatory work for the JIC, beginning Day D. These preparations will include initial discussion and sharing of information necessary for the delineation of territories controlled by Nusra and opposition groups in the areas of active hostilities for the purpose of ultimate operation of the JIC. The more comprehensive process of delineation will be conducted by experts once the JIC is established. Preparations for the JIC will also include: identifying suitable interim and long-term premises; determining necessary working procedures, consistent with the already agreed Terms of Reference (TOR); and determining if there are mutually agreeable adjustments that should be made, consistent with changes on the ground, to the already agreed map of the Designated Areas, so that JIC can be fully functional as soon as there are seven continuous days of adherence to the CoH and access to Aleppo as per the terms of this understanding.
In the period between Day D and the establishment of the JIC, the Sides will each develop actionable Nusrah and Daesh (ISIL) targets so as to be in a position to share them in a way that allows strikes to commence on the day the JIC is established. Simultaneous with U.S. or Russian strikes on targets agreed to within the JIC, all Syrian military air activities — fixed and rotary wing — will be halted in the agreed designated areas pursuant to the agreed ToR.
On Day D, government and opposition groups that are parties to the CoH shall confirm to the Sides their commitment to the CoH. Any violation of the CoH before or after the JIC is established will be dealt with in accordance with the terms for the CoH agreed to in the Joint Statement of February 22, 2016 and the Standard Operating Procedures to Support the Cessation of Hostilities of March 28, 2016.

The Sides commit to expedite the deployment of UNOPS on Castello Road as agreed in paragraph 3 (b).

Day D will commence at 19:00 Damascus time on Monday, 12 September, 2016.

Each Side reserves the right to withdraw from this arrangement if they believe the terms have not been fulfilled.

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08Oct16

Draft resolution tabled by Russia on Syria