NEW YORK (JTA) — A U.N. Security Council statement condemning Syria’s crackdown on dissidents was inadequate, the American Jewish Committee and the Anti-Defamation League said.
In its statement Wednesday, the United Nations condemned the “widespread violations of human rights and the use of force against civilians by the Syrian authorities.” It also called on for those responsible for the violence to be held accountable.
The AJC and ADL said the U.N. reaction to the human rights violations being committed by President Bashar Assad’s regime did not go far enough.
"The Syrian people deserve more empathy and firmer action by the U.N.,” AJC Executive Director David Harris said in a statement the same day. “Regrettably, several of the Security Council members have chosen to ignore their anguish.”
Abraham Foxman, the ADL’s national director, issued a statement urging the U.N. to make it “unambiguously clear to President Assad that unless he reverses course, the international community will impose immediate consequences on his repressive regime.”
The global Jewish community has joined Syrian opposition groups and other human rights organizations in urging the United Nations to take an even stronger stance against the brutal crackdown.
The U.N. statement was the first response from the world body to the crackdown in Syria since the country began using military force against protesters in mid-March. However, it does not have the weight of international law and carries no penalty against Damascus if the violence continues.
China and Russia have led the opponents of a Security Council resolution that would enact penalties against Syria’s energy sector. The U.S. and its allies have backed such a measure.
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