The Syrian Observatory For Human Rights

Aleppo and the United Nations’ inaction

Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Turkey issued a statement calling on the UN to hold an emergency special session of the General Assembly to end the Aleppo crisis, particularly in east of the city. The statement urged the UN “to bear its responsibilities pertaining to maintaining international peace and security particularly when the Security Council is incapable of doing so due to lack of consensus.”

The statement also condemned dealing with the Syrian crisis like it was an ordinary event, and said the horrific circumstances there confirm that calls to hold an emergency special session of the General Assembly were justified. The international institution’s incapability to perform the tasks it was established for following World War II, and which are achieving world peace, ending wars and protecting people, indicates the extent of its damage and hypocrisy.

Syria’s disastrous situation – which has been ongoing for six years now – is the world’s current tragedy

Mshari Al Thaydi

Syria’s disastrous situation – which has been ongoing for six years now – is the world’s current tragedy. The number of those killed is almost 500,000, while there are millions of displaced and missing people and refugees. There are shocking images of victims, whether children, women or the elderly. This has been happening on a daily basis. The disaster exposes Arabs’ and Muslims’ weakness to protect their countries, people, sovereignty, dignity, present and future.

“Huge scandal”

How can the Russians, from Siberia, or the Shiite Afghanis from Herat’s valleys, or the Iranians from Qom and Hamadan, or the Iraqi militant invaders from the marshes of Nasiriyah and extremist alleys in Baghdad, or terrorists of Hassan Nasrallah’s Lebanese party Hezbollah, invade the land, sky and sea of Syria, kill children and women, shell refugees while the UN Security Council does nothing?

It’s a huge scandal. It’s a permanent shame that will never be erased. It’s not acceptable to co-exist with such a situation like “it does not concern us” like the statement by Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the UAE and Turkey said.

There are international efforts on a daily basis to pursue ISIS and Al-Qaeda. Measures have been quick and this is great. These are good and blessed efforts which are actually required, however we do not see the same pace, enthusiasm, speed and consensus to end the hideous Iranian terrorism in Arab countries. We do not see these efforts in stricken Aleppo. Why? Is it because the Syrians in Aleppo or the Iraqis in Mosul are this cheap?

“Swamp of anger”

Ending the Iranian-Syrian invasion and stopping Russian intervention is the core of Gulf and Turkish security or rather of all Arab countries’ security. Only if some Arabs were wise and considered matters away from maliciousness and altered that old mentality regarding Arab national security.

What’s strange is that international governments are shocked, afraid and on alert, as ISIS’ methods flourish around the world, but they help provide the perfect environment to create a breeding ground in the swamp of anger and vengeance.

Aiding Aleppo, breaking the siege and saving its people from the monsters of Bashar al-Assad, Iran, Khamenei, Hadi al-Amiri and Vladimir Putin are not a moral or humanitarian issue, but a very high security and political interest.

This article was first published in Asharq al-Awsat on December 5, 2016.
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Saudi journalist Mshari Al Thaydi presents Al Arabiya News Channel’s “views on the news” daily show “Maraya.” He has previously held the position of a managing senior editor for Saudi Arabia & Gulf region at pan-Arab newspaper Asharq al-Awsat. Al Thaydi has published several papers on political Islam and social history of Saudi Arabia. He appears as a guest on several radio and television programs to discuss the ideologies of extremist groups and terrorists.