There was confirmation out of the United Nations today that 20 peacekeepers with the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) in the Golan Heights border region of Syria have been captured by a Syrian militia group
It took two years for the crisis in Syria to escalate to the point where 1 million Syrians have been officially registered by the UN Refugee Agency. The actual number of people who fled is likely to be higher.
journalists on Monday to discuss the role of the UN in managing complex crises and conflicts. The two major topics of discussion were Syria and Mali, where ongoing combat situations need to be alleviated before peacekeeping efforts can begin and where new and more organized forms of terrorism present distinct challenges for the UN.
The Assistant Secretary of State for Population, Refugees, and Migration Ann Richard visited the region recently as part of a high profile US delegation examining the humanitarian response to the Syria crisis. Their visit coincided with some erroneous rumors on social media that the UN was channelling aid money through the Assad regime.
Whether or not the international community adequately supports humanitarian relief for Syria is a good measure of countries’ commitment to the welfare of the Syrian people.
