Syria calls for dissolution of US-led coalition

This US Navy handout photo obtained July 1, 2017 shows an F/A-18E Super Hornet, attached to the "Golden Warriors" of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 87,as it prepares to land aboard the aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush (CVN 77)in the Mediterranean Sea on June 25, 2017. (Photo by AFP)

Syria has reiterated its calls for the dissolving of the US-led coalition over its “continued and systematic massacre” of civilians.

“Syria renews its call to immediately dissolve the coalition which was established outside the framework of the UN and without requesting permission from the Syrian government,” said Syria’s Foreign Ministry in two letters sent to UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres and the chairman of the UNSC on Sunday.

The letters stressed that the coalition’s continued destruction of residential neighborhoods and the use of phosphorus munitions are a flagrant violation of international humanitarian law.

They further called on the UNSC to carry out its responsibility of preserving international peace and security, and urged all states to abide by the UNSC resolutions, especially Resolution 2253.

UNSC Resolution 2253, adopted unanimously in December 2015, covers asset freeze, travel ban, arms embargo and listing criteria for Daesh, al-Qaeda militants and “associated individuals, groups, undertaking and entities.”

This photo shows a displaced Syrian child, who fled the countryside surrounding the Daesh stronghold of Raqqah, posing for a photo at a temporary camp in the village of Ain Issa on May 1, 2017. (Photo by AFP)

Last week, Damascus wrote similar letters to the United Nations, calling for the dissolution of the US-led coalition which has been bombing the country for years.

The US and its allies have been bombarding what they call Daesh positions inside Syria since September 2014 without any authorization from the Damascus government or a UN mandate. 

The strikes, however, have on many occasions resulted in civilian casualties and failed to fulfill their declared aim of countering terrorism.On Friday, a report released by the US-led coalition said that its airstrikes against purported Daesh targets in Syria and Iraq have claimed the lives of at least 624 civilians since the start of the military campaign in 2014.

Airwars, a UK-based non-profit monitoring group, says at least 4,734 civilians have been killed by coalition airstrikes in Iraq and Syria during the same period.

The co-called Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says the 42,234 documented airstrikes in the country have resulted in a minimum estimate of some 7,000 civilians killed by the US-led coalition between 2014 and 2017.