Press Releases

The Secretary-General is deeply concerned about renewed and intensive violence in Douma in Eastern Ghouta over the last 36 hours, following a period of relative calm. Reports include sustained airstrikes and shelling on Douma, killing of civilians, destruction of civilian infrastructure, and attacks…

The Secretary-General met on 20 March with the Director General of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) and reiterated his support for its work in investigating allegations of the use of chemical weapons in Syria, and his confidence in the integrity and expertise of the…

The Secretary-General is concerned about continued reports of attacks throughout the besieged enclave of eastern Ghouta, which reportedly claimed the lives of more than 100 people on 5 March, as well as reports of shelling of the city of Damascus. An inter-agency convoy by the United Nations, the…

UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura attended a meeting today with representatives of the Islamic Republic of Iran, the Russian Federation, and the Republic of Turkey, hosted by the Russian Federation at its permanent mission in Geneva. He discussed with the three guarantors important…

The Secretary-General welcomes the Security Council’s adoption of a resolution demanding a cessation of hostilities throughout Syria for at least 30 days. The Secretary-General stresses his expectation that the resolution will be immediately implemented and sustained, particularly to ensure the…

The Secretary-General is deeply alarmed by the escalating situation in Eastern Ghouta and its devastating impact on civilians Nearly 400,000 people in Eastern Ghouta have been subjected to airstrikes, shelling and bombardment. As a result of the siege of the area by the Syrian Government forces…

The Secretary-General, having been fully briefed by his Special Envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mistura, and taking into account the statement by the Russian Federation that the outcome of the Congress of the Syrian National Dialogue, which will be held in Sochi on 29-30 January 2018, would be brought…

The Secretary-General continues to follow closely the situation in Raqqa, Syria. He recalls the obligation of all parties to the conflictto protect civilians and abide by international humanitarian and human rights law. He also urges the parties to facilitate humanitarian access in order to allow…

The Secretary-General welcomes the announcement by the Governments of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, the Russian Federation and the United States of America of a de-escalation zone and arrangements to support a ceasefire and delivery of humanitarian assistance in southwest Syria. This is a…

The Special Envoy for Syria wishes to announce he will convene a seventh round of the intra-Syrian talks in Geneva. The target date for arrival of invitees is 9 July, with the round beginning on 10 July. He intends to convene further rounds of talks in August and in September. As in previous rounds…