Envoy raps UN General Assembly resolution against Syria

Syria's Permanent Representative to the UN Bashar al-Jaafari strongly criticized the recent anti-Syria resolution approved by the UN General Assembly, and called on the world body to encourage national dialogue in Syria, instead. On May 15, the UN General Assembly approved the resolution against Syria by a vote of 107-12, with 59 abstentions. Iran, Russia, China, Belarus, Bolivia, Venezuela and Ecuador were among the 12 countries that opposed the resolution, while Brazil, South Africa, India, and Indonesia were among those states that abstained. In a statement, Bashar al-Jafari said that the UN body had adopted a biased and unbalanced resolution. "We rely on the UN and its member states to support Syria and its people against the culture of extremism and terrorism, and to encourage the comprehensive national dialogue to peacefully resolve the Syrian crisis," he said. "We expect the UN to carefully read the map of current events in our region away from the interests of certain countries within or outside the region to safeguard the principles of international law and protect the Syrian people's aspirations." Syria has been experiencing unrest since March 2011 with organized attacks by well-armed gangs against Syrian police forces and border guards being reported across the country. Hundreds of people, including members of the security forces, have been killed, when some protest rallies turned into armed clashes. The government blames outlaws, saboteurs, and armed terrorist groups for the deaths, stressing that the unrest is being orchestrated from abroad.