Syria Talks in Geneva Overshadowed by Frustration Over Humanitarian Access
Egeland said that There has been massive loss of life — hundreds and hundreds have been wounded,
30, 2017
GENEVA — The starvation and bombardment of Syrian civilians in a long-besieged Damascus suburb overshadowed efforts on Thursday by
United Nations diplomats to inject life into another round of peace talks in Geneva aimed at ending the nearly seven-year-old war.
But there was no sign of movement to direct talks by Thursday, when negotiators from both sides met simultaneously with Mr. de Mistura
and his deputy at the United Nations headquarters in Geneva.
His account of conditions close to the Syrian capital provided a pessimistic backdrop to the long-troubled efforts of the special
United Nations envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mistura, to make progress in discussions with government and opposition negotiators.
Amnesty International reported Thursday that Syrian aircraft had attacked Eastern Ghouta with cluster munitions over the past 10 days, and accused the government of President Bashar al-Assad of "war crimes on an epic scale." The organization said at least 10 civilians had been killed by the cluster munitions, which are internationally banned weapons
that disperse bomblets that fan out, killing and maiming indiscriminately.
The special United Nations humanitarian adviser for Syria, Jan Egeland, expressed outrage over what he described as heavy casualties in the suburb, Eastern Ghouta,
and the inability of aid workers to help the 400,000 residents trapped there.
