7 years of conflict in syria: statement by international development secretary and foreign secretary

7 years of conflict in syria: statement by international development secretary and foreign secretary


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Press release 7 YEARS OF CONFLICT IN SYRIA: STATEMENT BY INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT SECRETARY AND FOREIGN SECRETARY * English * العربيَّة International Development Secretary Penny Mordaunt


and Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson mark seven years of the Syria conflict. This was published under the 2016 to 2019 May Conservative government The International Development Secretary,


Penny Mordaunt, and Foreign Secretary, Boris Johnson, have issued a statement to mark seven years of the Syria conflict. They said: > Today the Syria crisis enters its eighth year. It has


 become one of > the longest and bloodiest wars in recent history. The impact on > Syrians, above all civilians, has been devastating with an estimated > 400,000 dead and 13 million


 in need of humanitarian assistance. >  > The Asad regime and those who back it bear overwhelming > responsibility for the destruction of the country, its > infrastructure and 


the lives of its people. >  > Despite promises of de-escalation, the violence continues and the > civilian death toll continues to rise. Last month the UK supported > UN Security


 Council Resolution 2401 calling for a ceasefire. Yet in > Eastern Ghouta – which Russia itself declared to be a > de-escalation area – the regime, with Russian support, has > 


continued to bombard and besiege the population, turning it into a > hell on earth. Over 1,100 people are estimated to have been killed > there since 18 February alone. >  > We 


find it utterly abhorrent that the regime is using food and > medical supplies as a weapon of war. Civilians continue to be > deliberately and indiscriminately targeted by military 


strikes, and > despite promises made by Russia to ensure Syria would abandon all of > its chemical weapons in 2013, international investigators have > confirmed that the regime has 


since used chemical weapons in four > separate attacks – which Russia has gone to great lengths to > conceal. The UK is committed to ensuring that all those responsible > for 


chemical weapons use and other violations of international law > in this conflict are held to account. >  > The UK has always been at the forefront of the response to the > 


crisis. More than 13 million people in Syria and in neighbouring > countries are still in need of assistance. We will continue to help > innocent people survive the toughest situations


 imaginable and, > ultimately, help them to rebuild their lives. >  > The suffering will only end when there is a political solution to > the conflict. We will continue to use 


our position on the UN > Security Council to pursue this, as well as to unlock humanitarian > access and protect civilians. The UN is ready to mediate a > settlement. The opposition


 have declared their readiness for > negotiations without preconditions. But the regime continues to > obstruct progress. The international community must commit to a > ceasefire 


and a political process that ends this conflict for good. SHARE THIS PAGE The following links open in a new tab * Share on Facebook (opens in new tab) * Share on Twitter (opens in new tab)