Americas

Americas

UN chief strongly condemns suicide attacks in Syria

11 May 2012 02:05 (UTC +04:00)

Baku-APA. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki- moon strongly condemned two suicide bombings that rocked Syria’s capital Damascus earlier Thursday, calling on all sides fully to cease armed violence in all its forms, and to "distance themselves from indiscriminate bombings and other terrorist acts," Ban’s spokesperson Martin Nesirky said here at a daily noon briefing, APA reports quoting Xinhua.

"The secretary-general strongly condemns today’s attacks in Damascus,"said Nesirky. "The secretary-general reiterates his urgent call on all sides fully to comply with their obligations to cease armed violence in all its forms, and to protect civilians, as well as to distance themselves from indiscriminate bombings and other terrorist acts."

All sides must abide by Security Council resolution 2043 and the six-point plan, which commit the parties to a peaceful resolution of the crisis, Nesirky said in a brief statement sent to reporters shortly after the briefing.

The secretary-general underscores once more the need for immediate and full cooperation with UN efforts aimed at ending all violence and human rights violations, securing humanitarian access and facilitating a Syrian-led political transition leading to a democratic and plural political system in Syria, Nesirky said.

He added that the United Nations is committed to continue doing all it can to achieve these goals.

At least 55 people were killed and 370 others wounded in the twin suicide bombings that shook an intelligence complex in Damascus Thursday. The blasts, the latest in a string of bombings, came as UN observers are being sent in to monitor a cease-fire that was brokered by the UN-Arab League Joint Special Envoy for Syria Kofi Annan and went into effect on April 12.