UN chief Guterres calls for lifting all sanctions on Syria during two-day visit
UN Secretary-General António Guterres, concluding a two-day visit to Syria, urged the immediate removal of all sanctions and called for international support for the country's recovery.
United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres called for the removal of all sanctions on Syria as he concluded a two-day visit to the country on Sunday. During his visit, Guterres met senior officials including President Ahmed al-Sharaa, Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani and the speaker of the new transitional parliament which held its first session this month. Also in Damascus, he met members of the UN peacekeeping force deployed in the Israeli-occupied Syrian Golan Heights, as well as representatives of Syria's civil society, diverse communities, women and young people. He also visited Sednaya prison near the capital, Syria's most notoriously brutal facility under al-Assad.
"I welcome steps that have eased sanctions, and opening new possibilities for economic recovery, but all these sanctions must be removed immediately," Guterres told a press conference in Damascus, concluding what he called a "deeply meaningful and productive visit". He appealed to the international community to spare no effort in supporting the Syrian people and government, emphasizing that Syria needs investment in its people, economy, and institutions, as well as help to restore services, rebuild infrastructure, and facilitate the safe return of refugees.
Since Assad's ousting, some 1.7 million refugees have returned to Syria, according to the UN, while around 5.5 million people remain displaced inside the country and six million overseas. The World Bank has estimated post-war reconstruction could cost $216 billion (€190 billion).
Guterres is the first UN chief to visit Syria since his predecessor Ban Ki-moon in 2009, two years before the start of Syria's war, which killed more than half a million people.
During Guterres' visit, Syrian state media said Israeli forces carried out an incursion into the country's south, entering villages in Daraa province, setting up a checkpoint and dropping leaflets warning residents not to obstruct vehicle movements. After the overthrow of Assad, Israel sent troops into the UN-patrolled buffer zone on the Golan Heights and has carried out strikes and incursions deeper into Syrian territory. Guterres on Saturday said that "violations of Syria's sovereignty and territorial integrity are unacceptable and must cease," emphasizing that "the Golan Heights are Syrian territory." During a meeting with President al-Sharaa, Guterres reaffirmed the UN's commitment to Syria's sovereignty and expressed deep concern regarding Israeli violations of the 1974 disengagement agreement. He also stated that the transition in Syria is "going in the right direction."
