HRI: United Nations Arts Initiative Humanitarian
Intervention Initiative (H-II) Exposure,
Strategic Planning,
Development and Implementation
Syria:
International Humanitarian and Security Discussions
Contact:
Stephen M. Apatow Founder,
Director of Research & Development Humanitarian
Resource Institute (UN:NGO:DESA) Humanitarian University
Consortium Graduate Studies Center
for Medicine, Veterinary Medicine & Law Phone:
203-668-0282 Email:
s.m.apatow@humanitarian.net Internet:
www.humanitarian.net
H-II OPSEC
Url: www.H-II.org
Where the war still
Echoes - Episode 1: Moving IRINnews Syria
film on life as a refugee - Syrians Deserve Better -- IRIN Films
(Youtube)
In The Spotlight
SYRIA2012:The KONY2012 Initiative has
demonstrated to the world how social media
can be used to advance human rights across the globe. Today, the SYRIA2012 initiative is being
coordinated under the umbrella of the United Nations Arts
Initiative, in support of efforts to (1) help stop the
atrocities in Syria, (2) bring those responsible
for war crimes and crimes against humanity to justice and (3) advance
reconstruction and development in the regions devastated during this
humanitarian catastrophe.
In an address to the UN General Assembly,
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has stated that the Syrian authorities
have committed widespread crimes against the civilian population. Mr
Ban blamed the Syrian authorities for creating an armed conflict and
using disproportionate force against initially largely peaceful
opposition forces. -- Ban
Ki-moon Says Syrian Authorities Committed Crimes Against Civilian
Population:
International Criminal Law Bureau, 3 March 2012.
Call for Humanitarian
corridor for cities under siege, call for withdrawal
of all Syrian troops, NATO: UN Peacekeeping Force for containment of
threats, facilitation of humanitarian assistance.
Interpol
Fusion Task Force: More than 240 designated FTF contact
officers from more than 120 countries form this global network of
counter-terrorism specialists.
12 February 2012
The Russia/China Veto
of the UN Security Council resolution to support
International Law and the Declaration of Human Rights, in the face of
War Crimes and Crimes Against Humanity in Syria, has now opened the
door for the void to be filled by Al-Qaida:
Human Rights &
International Law vs Enforcement - CBRN Implications
- A 10 Year Discussion:
If
a
rogue
country is in possession of weapons of mass destruction, and the
intelligence
community has sufficient information that an imminent threat exists for
a
terrorist attack, does the United Nations and Security Council possess
the
capacity to prevent the incursion via preemptive action?
In
the
context of international law, Jayantha Dhanapala,
Under-Secretary-General
for Disarmament Affairs, United Nations, articulates:
"Perhaps
the weakest area of the rule of law now concerns the issue of
enforcement.
It is a truism that international law lacks the police functions that
are
found in domestic legal systems -- it is instead a system that still
relies
largely upon self-help when it comes to enforcement. The ability of the
UN
Security Council to perform its enforcement responsibilities under the
Charter
is limited by its need to operate in consensus and by its practical
inability to order enforcement actions -- especially involving the use
of military force
-- against one of its permanent members."
The
escalation of the humanitarian crisis in Syria, has prompted a
call for the international community to support an immediate Arms
Embargo, that extends to all countries that are state sponsors of
terrorism in the region (U.S.
State Department, NATO). This
includes neutralization of interbank activities associated with the
embargo and financing of terrorism. [1]
Contact:
Stephen M. Apatow Founder,
Director of Research & Development Humanitarian
Resource Institute (UN:NGO:DESA) Humanitarian University
Consortium Graduate Studies Center
for Medicine, Veterinary Medicine & Law Phone:
203-668-0282 Email:
s.m.apatow@humanitarian.net Internet:
www.humanitarian.net
Syria: Focus Moves to
International Criminal Court
Earlier Today,
thirteen of the council’s 15 members voted in favor today
of a proposal by Western and Arab countries to end the bloodshed
in Syria. Russia and China, two of the five permanent council
members with veto power, blocked its passage. [1] Following
the vote, UN
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said the block undermined the role of the
UN and the international community
at a time when the Syrian authorities needed to hear a “unified voice”.
[2] Calls for immediate emergency action to protect
civilian
populations in Syria, now moves to the International Criminal Court
(ICC):
Since Syria is not a
member of the ICC, and is outside of the jurisdiction of the Court, the
UN Security Council would need to mediate a referral (as was the case
in Libya: United
Nations Security Council Resolution 1970).
The current dilemma has prompted an effort to establish an alternative
mechanism for referral to the ICC, that would be applicable in cases
associated with War Crimes, Crimes Against Humanity, and Genocide. [3]
