SYRIA / GAYE

STORY: SYRIA / GAYE
TRT: 2.42
SOURCE: UNSMIS
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS

DATELINE: 13 AUGUST 2012, DAMASCUS, SYRIA


SHOTLIST:

13 AUGUST 2012, DAMASUCS, SYRIA

1. Wide shot, exterior hotel where press conference is held
2. Pan left, General Babacar Gaye arriving to press briefing
3. Wide shot, cameramen
4. SOUNDBITE (English) General Babacar Gaye, Head of the United Nations Supervision Mission in Syria (UNSMIS):
“It is clear that violence is increasing in many parts of Syria. The indiscriminate use of heavy weapons by the Government and targeted attacks by the opposition in urban centres are inflicting a heavy toll on innocent civilians.”
5. Med shot, cameraman
6. SOUNDBITE (English) General Babacar Gaye, Head of the United Nations Supervision Mission in Syria (UNSMIS):
“I deeply regret that none of the parties has prioritized the needs of civilians. The fighting continues and I continue to remind the parties to their obligations, of their obligations to respect international humanitarian law and to protect civilians. The conflict has gone on too long and far too many people are suffering.”
7. Med shot, cameraman
8. SOUNDBITE (English) General Babacar Gaye, Head of the United Nations Supervision Mission in Syria (UNSMIS):
“Is it the use of heavy weapons, is it the displaced persons, all these demonstrations of violence, are something that we should condemn. Because they are the demonstrations of a mindset, the mindset of a military logic and we are again appealing for this mindset to shift to a mindset of dialogue.”
9. Med shot, cameraman
10. SOUNDBITE (English) General Babacar Gaye, Head of the United Nations Supervision Mission in Syria (UNSMIS):
“We have reoriented our operations to monitor the violence, we need less people to do this monitoring. It’s why we reduced our strength in this country. But until the last minute, the remaining one hundred observers, along with our civilian colleagues, will operate until the last minute.”
11. Med shot, cameraman
12. SOUNDBITE (English) General Babacar Gaye, Head of the United Nations Supervision Mission in Syria (UNSMIS):
“Whatever the country, you know our United Nations is committed to the freedom of action of the press and the media. In this country, the press has a tremendous role to play. So we cannot but condemn any violence against the media coming from any of the sides.”
13. Pan left, Gaye ending press conference


STORYLINE:

The head of the UN observer mission in Syria today (13 August) appealed to both sides of the conflict to drop their “mindset of military logic” and prioritize the needs of civilians.

Speaking to reporters in Damascus, General Babacar Gaye said violence was increasing in many parts of Syria, with the “indiscriminate use of heavy weapons by the government and targeted attacks by the opposition” inflicting a heavy toll on civilians.

Gaye, who took charge of the UN Supervision Mission in Syria (UNSMIS) last month, said he “deeply regretted” that none of the parties were putting the needs of civilians first. He called on them to respect international humanitarian law, protect civilians, and end the conflict.

Asked what in his view was the most concerning detail in the conflict, Gaye responded that the use of heavy weapons and displaced people were demonstrations of violence that should be condemned because they revealed a “mindset of a military logic”. He urged the parties instead to “shift to a mindset of dialogue”.

On the activities of the UN observer mission, whose mandate expires in six days and whose future is the subject of bitter controversy in the Security Council, Gaye said one hundred observers were left on the ground at the moment. The mission had reduced the number of monitors because it needed fewer people to do the type of monitoring it was currently engaged in. These remaining observers, along with civilian staff, would “operate until the last minute”.

In response to a question on attacks against the media in Syria, where several journalists were killed or kidnapped over the weekend, Gaye said the United Nations was committed to press freedom in any country, and in Syria “the press has a tremendous role to play”. He said “we cannot but condemn any violence against the media coming from any of the sides”.