UN envoy will act as human shield

SYRIA: PREPARED TO HELP CIVILIANS GET SAFE PASSAGE

Major military operation in Idlib would pose humanitarian nightmare.

Geneva

The United Nations Syria peace envoy offered to travel to Idlib yesterday to help ensure civilians can leave through a humanitarian corridor amid fears of an imminent government offensive to retake the last major region controlled by rebels.

“I am once again prepared ... personally and physically to get involved myself ... to ensure such a temporary corridor would be feasible and guaranteed for the people so that they can then return to their own places once this is over,” Staffan de Mistura told the media in Geneva, Switzerland.

His comments came amid fears the Syrian government, backed by long-time ally Russia, is mobilising for a military offensive to retake Idlib, the last province still held by the country’s beleaguered rebels.

Idlib, which borders Turkey, is home to nearly three million people, up to half of whom are rebels and civilians transferred en masse from other territory that has fallen to Syrian troops after intense assaults.

A major military operation in Idlib would pose a particular humanitarian nightmare because there is no opposition territory left in Syria where people could be evacuated to.

“There is no other Idlib,” De Mistura said, stressing the need to ensure civilians can evacuate to nearby areas under government control, with guarantees their rights will be respected once they get there.

More than 350 000 people have been killed and millions displaced since Syria’s war started in 2011 with the brutal repression of antigovernment protests.

Two years ago, De Mistura offered to go to eastern Aleppo and to personally escort Al Nusra fighters out of the besieged city.

“Al Nusra refused my offer to accompany them out, and they went to Idlib, and we lost two months at least and thousands of people died because of that,” he said.

The United Nations envoy said there were an estimated 10 000 Al Qaeda and Al Nusra fighters in Idlib, along with their families. – AFP