The UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Thursday announced the resignation of the UN-League of Arab States Joint
Special Envoy for the Syrian crisis, Kofi Annan.
“Mr. Annan has informed me, and the Secretary-General of the League of Arab States, Mr. Nabil El Araby, of his intention not to renew his mandate when it expires on 31 August 2012.
“I wish to express my deepest gratitude to Mr. Annan for the determined and courageous efforts he has made as the Joint Special Envoy for Syria,” Ban said in a statement at the UN Headquarters in New York.
Annan, a former UN Secretary-General, was appointed in late February to serve as the high-level representative of the Secretaries-General of the UN and the League of Arab States on the Syrian crisis.
He was to provide good offices aimed at bringing an end to all violence and human rights violations, and promoting a peaceful solution to the Syrian crisis.
Syria had been wracked by violence, with more than 10,000 people, mostly civilians, killed since the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad began some 17 months ago.
In recent days, there have been reports of an escalation in violence in many towns and villages, as well as the country’s two biggest cities, Damascus and Aleppo.
As part of his efforts, Annan put forward a six-point peace plan to help end the Syrian crisis.
The plan called for an end to violence, access for humanitarian agencies to provide relief to those in need, the release of detainees, the start of inclusive political dialogue, and unrestricted access to the country for the international media.
Despite initial signs of acceptance of the plan and repeated calls from UN officials, there had been little in the way of the plan’s implementation by the parties to the conflict.
“The hand extended to turn away from violence in favour of dialogue and diplomacy – as spelled out in the six-point plan – has not been not taken, even though it still remains the best hope for the people of Syria,” the UN scribed added.
He noted that both the Syrian government and the opposition forces continue to demonstrate their determination to rely on ever-increasing violence, and that, in addition, “persistent divisions” within the Security Council have themselves become an obstacle to diplomacy, making the work of any mediator vastly more difficult.
“Kofi Annan deserves our profound admiration for the selfless way in which he has put his formidable skills and prestige to this most difficult and potentially thankless of assignments.
“He worked within the mandate provided to him by the General Assembly and with the cooperation of various Member States.
“We have worked closely together these past months, and I am indebted to him and his team for all they have tried to achieve. I will continue to draw on his wisdom and counsel, and on the work of the Office of the Joint Special Envoy.
“I remain convinced that yet more bloodshed is not the answer; each day of it will only make the solution more difficult while bringing deeper suffering to the country and greater peril to the region,” Mr. Ban stressed.
The Security Council is due to hold consultations on Syria on Thursday afternoon, and the General Assembly is also expected to hold a meeting on same issue on Friday.
Ban is discussing replacement for Annan
UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon, said on Thursday that he was consulting with the Arab League to find a successor to Syria envoy Kofi Annan.
Annan’s resignation would take effect on August 31.
Ban said he intended to find promptly a successor who could “carry on the crucial peacemaking effort”.
“I remain convinced that more bloodshed is not the answer.
“Each day of it will only make the solution more difficult while bringing deeper suffering to the country and greater peril to the region,” Ban said.
Russian UN Ambassador Vitaly Churkin told newsmen that he “regrets” Annan’s resignation.
However, he said, the envoy had another month in his mandate and he hoped that he could use “effectively the remaining time to pursue his efforts to stop the bloodshed in Syria” .
- NAN