UNSC unanimously adopts French-proposed resolution against ISIL

File photo: United Nations Security Council in session  [photo: UN.org]

According to the UN News Centre, dated 20NOV15:

The United Nations Security Council this evening called on all countries that can do so to take the war on terrorism to Islamic State-controlled territory in Syria and Iraq and destroy its safe haven, warning that the group intends to mount further terror attacks like those that devastated Paris and Beirut last week.

In a unanimously adopted resolution, the 15-member body declared the group’s terrorist attacks abroad “a global and unprecedented threat to international peace and security” following the “horrifying terrorist attacks” it perpetrated recently in Sousse (Tunisia), Ankara (Turkey), over Sinai (Egypt) with the downing of a Russian plane, and in Beirut and Paris.

It warned that the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), or Da’esh as it is also known, “has the capability and intention to carry out” further strikes and called upon “Member States that have the capacity to do so to take all necessary measures, in compliance with international law, in particular international human rights, refugee and humanitarian law” on its territory.

Condemning “in the strongest terms” ISIL and other terrorist groups in the region such Al-Nusrah Front, the Council Member States “to eradicate the safe haven they have established over significant parts of Iraq and Syria.”

It called on Member States to intensify efforts to stem the flow of foreign terrorist fighters to Iraq and Syria and to prevent and suppress the financing of terrorism, and reaffirmed that those responsible for terrorist acts, violations of international humanitarian law or violations or abuses of human rights must be held accountable.

COMMENTARY: The full text of the resolution hadn't been uploaded by the UN at the time of this posting but it appears the the government of the Syrian Arab Republic was not condemned in the resolution, which is significant. According to Russia Today, dated 20NOV15:

Syria’s UN Ambassador, Bashar Ja’afari, hinted prior to Friday’s vote that this resolution was long overdue. “Welcome to everybody who finally woke up and joined the club of combating terrorists.”

Meanwhile, Russia is continuing its work on a draft resolution proposing international military campaigns to fight against Islamic State. The current text is an updated version of a document submitted on September 30.

Previously on 19NOV15 the UNGA human rights committee Thursday adopted a Saudi-proposed resolution condemning certain foreign interventions in Syria

According to Reuters, dated 19NOV15:

The U.N. General Assembly’s human rights committee Thursday adopted a Saudi-drafted resolution condemning Iranian and Russian intervention in Syria, a decision that the Syrian and Iranian delegations rejected as unhelpful and unjustified. The nonbinding resolution, authored by Saudi Arabia and sponsored by Qatar and other Arab nations, the United States and other Western powers, passed by the 193-nation assembly’s third committee.

There were 115 votes in favor, 15 against and 51 abstentions.

Without explicitly naming Russia, it said the General Assembly “strongly condemns all attacks against the Syrian moderate opposition and calls for their immediate cessation, given that such attacks benefit so-called ISIS and other terrorist groups, such as Al-Nusra Front.”

The resolution’s language is clearly aimed at Russia, which has been bombing opposition forces in Syria for two months. Moscow says it is attacking ISIS but Western officials say they have targeted other rebel forces and Western-backed groups.

The resolution also condemned the presence in Syria of “all foreign terrorist fighters ... and foreign forces fighting on behalf of the Syrian regime, particularly the Al-Quds Brigades, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps [of Iran] and other groups such as Hezbollah.”

[…]

The resolution demands foreign militias leave Syria immediately.

It also blasts ISIS and other Islamist militant groups for rights abuses and atrocities.

But most of the criticism in the resolution is aimed at the government of Syrian President Bashar Assad, whom Western and many Arab nations would like to see ousted.

COMMENTARY: Predictably, the Syrians and Iranians rejected the resolution. The Iranian response was put forward by Iran’s Ambassador and Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations Gholam Hossein Dehqani. According to PressTV, dated 20NOV15:

Dehqani warned of the “adverse consequences” of the resolution on the UN reputation and said Iranian military forces are present in Syria upon an official request by the Syrian government to provide consultations to the war-hit country.

“Therefore, the adoption of such a text is a violation of international regulations and a breach of governments’ right to establish peace in their own territory,” the Iranian envoy pointed out.

He said such claims are aimed at taking revenge against forces that have so far played the most effective role in the battle against terrorism and extremism, adding that Daesh terrorists would have overran more areas in the Middle East in the absence of such forces.

The Iranian diplomat once again reiterated that the resolution would act as an award for extremists and terrorists as well as all those who use financial and logistical resources to spread extremist and terrorist ideologies.

The Syrian response was put forward by Syria's U.N. Ambassador Bashar Ja'afari. According to Reuters, dated 19NOV15:

Syria's U.N. Ambassador Bashar Ja'afari rejected the resolution and accused its Saudi authors of hypocrisy about what he said are widespread human rights in the kingdom. He referred to "decapitation and flogging in public squares," saying they were like abuses of Islamic State.

He accused the Saudis, along with Qatar and Turkey, of supporting what he said were terrorists in Syria.

The delegates of Qatar, Turkey and Saudi Arabia rejected the charges.

Houthis Accept UNSC Resolution 2216

Calling for Withdrawal of Houthi Forces from Areas Seized

The Houthis have accepted the UN Security Council Resolution 2216, passed on 14 April, which calls on the Houthis to unconditionally withdraw their forces from areas they have seized, including capital Sanaa. UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said on Wednesday that the Houthis accepted the UNSC resolution in letter to the United Nations.

Houthis’ decision to accept the UNSC resolution was confirmed by former president Saleh’s General People’s Congress. Saleh has been a Houthi ally during the civil war in Yemen, which began when the Houthis took control of Sanaa in September 2014.  

The Houthi/Saleh representatives pledged to commit to the seven-point peace plan brokered by the UN in Oman, including ceasefire and the return of President Hadi’s government to Sanaa.

File photo: Al Jazeera

Biden Reiterates Conditions for Final Nuclear Agreement with Iran

Vice President Joe Biden said on Thursday that reaching a final nuclear deal requires Iran to accept demands for access to its military sites suspected of nuclear activities, lifting of sanctions phased out over time, and a clear snapback mechanism at the UN Security Council should it violates the deal.

Biden, speaking at a dinner gala at the Washington Institute for Near Eastern Policy, expressed support for the emerging final Iran nuclear deal, saying the agreement would provide “a historic opportunity to forge an enduring peaceful solution.” The emerging deal, Biden added, would “radically” alter the timeline on Iran’s ability to achieve breakout capabilities.

Biden said if Iran does not accept the demands he had outlined, President Obama was ready to walk away from the talks.

File photo: Vice President Joe Biden (Reuters)

Saleh, Yemen’s Former President, Calls on Huthis to Withdraw

Ali Abdullah Saleh, the influential former president of Yemen, today called on the Huthis to accept the UN Security Council resolution on Yemen and withdraw from territories seized in months of fighting, so the Saudi-led airstrikes can end and reconciliation begin. Saleh has been a key ally of the Huthis during their insurgency.

Saleh still holds sway over army units that are now working with the Huthis. If those units halt their operations and retreat to their bases, the Huthis will be hard pressed to hold any terrain in Aden and surrounding areas, which are key to their plans to rule over the entire country.

“I call on (the Huthis) to accept all UN Security Council decisions and to implement them in return for a halt in the coalition forces’ aggression,” Saleh said in statement read on his Yemen Today television channel. “I urge them and everyone – militias and al-Qaeda as well as militias loyal to Hadi – to withdraw from all provinces, especially Aden.” (AFP, 24 April)

Saleh also called for UN-brokered Saudi-Yemeni talks to be held in Geneva.

File photo: Former Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh (The Telegraph)

UN Imposes Arms Embargo against Huthis in Yemen

The UN Security Council today imposed an arms embargo on the Huthi insurgents, who are effectively in control of Yemen. The resolution also froze the assets of the insurgents' leader, Abdulmalik al-Huthi. The resolution, backed by Saudi-led Arab coalition, was passed with 14 votes in favor, with Russia abstaining. Any Iranian arms shipment to Yemen is now banned.

World Powers Hold Talks on Ending UN Sanctions on Iran – Report

Reuters reported today that the world major powers have begun holding talks about a UN Security Council resolution to lift UN sanctions on Iran if a nuclear agreement is reached with Tehran.

UN Security Council has imposed four sets of sanctions against Iran, which bans Iran from uranium enrichment and other sensitive nuclear work and bar it from buying and selling nuclear technology and materiel linked to ballistic missiles. There is also a UN arms embargo against Iran.

The talks between U.S., Britain, Russia, China, France and Germany, the P5+1, are taking place ahead of difficult negotiations with Iran next week on limiting the country’s nuclear program. The two sides have imposed a 31 March deadline to reach a framework agreement on a final accord to be reached by end of June.

A Security Council resolution on a nuclear deal with Iran could be legally binding, which would complicate attempts by those in Washington who are opposed to a deal to unravel the agreement in future.

Missile Capacity Not Negotiable – Iran

Iran’s deputy foreign minister and senior nuclear negotiator Abbas Araqchi said today in Tehran than the country would not discuss its ballistic missile capacity with P5+1.

“Iranian missile program is entirely for defense purposes. The Islamic Republic of Iran believes that its defense issues are not negotiable at all, and it will not discuss the issue with any foreign side,” Araqch said. (ISNA, 3 February)

Resolutions passed by the UN Security Council imposing sanctions against Iran for its nuclear program contain a provision prohibiting the country from maintaining ballistic missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads. Lifting of sanctions, including those imposed by UNSC, is a major part of nuclear negotiations between Iran and P5+1. Araqchi is saying that the particular provision dealing with the ballistic missile program should be ignored if the two sides are to reach an agreement.

UN Panel Finds Klos C. Weapons Originated from Iran

The UN Security Council’s Iran Sanctions Committee said in a confidential report obtained by Reuters on Friday that a shipment of rockets and other weapons that were concealed in containers on Klos C. vessel, which were seized by Israeli Navy in tin he Red Sea March, came from Iran. The finding puts the country in direct violation of the U.N. embargo on arms exports by Iran.

The UN panel of experts, part of the Security Council's Iran Sanctions Committee, which was established by the Security Council to monitor member states’ compliance with sanctions, reached their conclusions   after investigating the case and inspecting the seized cargo and documentation related to the shipment, which traveled from the Iranian port of Bandar Abbas to the Iraqi port of Umm Qasr, and from there in the direction of Port Sudan.

“The Panel finds that the manner of concealment in this case is consistent with several other cases reported to the (Security Council's Iran Sanctions) Committee and investigated by the Panel,” the panel of experts said.

“The Panel concludes that the shipment of arms and related materiel found aboard the Klos C is a violation of Iran's obligations under paragraph 5 of resolution 1747.” (Reuters, 27 June)

The report includes details on the arms, which were concealed in a shipment of cement: 40 M302 rockets and fuses, including four different variations of the rockets; 181 120 mm mortar shells; roughly 400,000 pieces of 7.62 caliber ammunition.

File photo: Klos C. being intercepted by Israeli marines, march 2014. (JNS.org)

Russia Vetos UNSC Resolution on Crimea

One day before Crimea holds a referendum to leave Ukraine and join Russia, the Russians vetoed a UN Security Council resolution to affirm Ukraine’s “sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity.”

Russia cast the sole vote against the resolution. Even China, which normally supports Russia at the Security Council, did not support the Russian position on Crimea and abstained from voting. 

Thirteen of the Council’s 15 members voted in favor of the resolution: United States, Britain, France, Argentina, Australia, Chad, Chile, Jordan, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Nigeria, South Korea and Rwanda.

Photo credit: Russia’s ambassador to the UN, Vitaly Churkin, casting the sole negative vote against Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. (Twitter)

Israel Intercepts Ship Carrying Rockets – Reportedly Loaded in Bandar Abbas

Israeli naval commandos today raided a cargo ship that had reportedly left the Iranian port of Bandar Abbas destined for Sudan and seized dozens of advanced heavy rockets hidden in boxes covered by hundreds of sacks of cement. The Associated Press quoted an Israeli Defense Force spokesman that the rockets were to be ultimately delivered to Palestinian militant groups in Gaza.

The rockets were M-302C, M-302D and M-302E with ranges of 100-130 miles (160-215 km), putting all of Israel in their range from Gaza. They were made in Syria.

The IDF Intelligence sources were quoted by as saying that Iran’s Quds Force was behind the elaborate plan to ship the rockets by air from Damascus International Airport to Iran, presumably through Iraqi airspace, then taking them to Bandar Abbas.

The ship, KLOS C (IMO: 8918710; MMSI: 373773000), is a general cargo vessel registered in Panama. The IDF says the ship left Bandar Abbas, made a stop at Iraqi port of Umm Qasr, where it loaded some more cargo containers, and then sailed toward Sudan. IDF says by stopping in Iraq, the Iranians were obscuring their tracks. IDF was reportedly following the weapons transfer for several months.

The ship was intercepted at 05:30 local time on Wednesday in the Red Sea by Shayetet 13, Israeli navy’s special forces, and along with its 17-man crew was taken to an Israeli port.

Later today, the Israeli foreign ministry said that it will lodge a formal complaint with UN Security Council against Iran. If the Iranians were behind the shipment, they are in violation of UNSC resolutions 1747 and 1929, prohibiting arms exports from Iran, and they could be referred to a special Iran sanctions committee set up by UNSC under resolution 1737.

UPDATE: The State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said on Wednesday that the U.S. military was prepared to get involved in the seizure of the cargo ship KLOS C.  Psaki added, however, that Israel “ultimately chose to take the lead.” The U.S. and Israel worked together, Psaki said, to track the ship.

UPDATE: Iran has denied the report, calling it “totally without foundation.” (Al Alam, 5 March)

Sources: AP, AFP, Defense-Update, JewishPress (5 March 2014)

File photo above: KLOS C seen at one of its recent port visits. (Super Jeq/marinetraffic.com)
Photos below, from top to bottom:
- Israeli naval commandos inspecting wooden carts containing M-302 rockets loaded on the KLOS-C. (IDF/JewishPress)
- Special operators of IDF’s naval commando unit ‘Shayetet 13′ in a training exercise on a Sa’ar 5-class Corvette of the Israeli Navy. (IDF.JewishPress)
- A still photo grabbed from an IDF video showing sacks of cement allegedly used to hide the missiles.

UN Withdraws Invitation to Iran for Geneva II

The UN General Secretary Ban Ki-moon has withdrawn his invitation to Iran to join this week’s Syria peace talks, the so-called Geneva II. The secretary general voiced his deep disappointment by Iran’s statement earlier today concerning Geneva II conference. (AP, 20 January)

The invitation was withdrawn shortly after Iran’s ambassador to the UN announced that Iran would not attend Geneva II if required to accept the Geneva I agreement of 2012.

A UN spokesman said senior Iranian officials have assured the Secretary General that Iran understood the terms of his invitation.

Meanwhile, the Syrian National Coalition announced that it will take part in Geneva II after the UN withdrew its invitation to Iran.

Photo credit: The UN Security Council, Monday 20 January 2014. (Craig Ruttle/AP)

Russia, China side with Iran at UN on recent Iranian missile testing

 

Above: IRGC-ASF crewmen react to successful test launch of Shahab ballistic missile during Great Prophet 7

 According to Reuters:

A U.N. Security Council committee is split over whether Iran's missile tests last year violated U.N. sanctions imposed on Tehran because of its nuclear and ballistic missile programs, Australia's U.N. envoy said on Monday.

That division effectively rules out any expansion of sanctions against Tehran over the tests for the time being, U.N. envoys said on condition of anonymity.

Diplomats said it was Russia, backed by China, that refused to declare Tehran's missile launches a violation of the U.N. restrictions, as a U.N. Panel of Experts on Iran said was the case.

As long as the sanctions committee remains divided, it will be difficult for the Security Council to add names of any Iranian individuals or entities linked to the missile tests, Security Council diplomats said on condition of anonymity.

The tests involved the launch of Iranian Shahab missiles in July 2012 during the "Great Prophet 7" military exercises.

"These included launches of the Shahab 1 and 3, Zelzal, Fateh-110 and Tondar missiles, as well as an anti-ship ballistic missile, the Khalij Fars," the Iran Panel of Experts said in its May report to the Iran sanctions committee.

A Russian delegate explained Moscow's position to the Security Council, saying "hasty conclusions not based on facts must be avoided."

A Chinese delegate reiterated Beijing's stance: "We are not in favor of increased new pressure or new sanctions against Iran."

The Russians and Chinese feel they were previously misled when voting for a new fly zone over Libya on the basis of protecting civilians, but instead in their view the NFZ's actual purpose was to impose regime change by armed force on the country. Since then, they have blocked any repeat type of measure on Syria and Iran.

Furthermore, the Russians and Chinese have repeatedly voiced their objections to unilateral sanctions against Iran outside the authority of the United Nations. As such, this sort of rejection shouldn't be considered a surprise.

For their part, the Iranians consider these missile tests defensive in nature, in support of their defense doctrine based on deterrence.

Photo: Islamic Republic News Agency

Iran Could Use Talks as Cover to Build Bomb, UN Secretary General

Situation Compared to North Korea

The UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon warned on Thursday that the international community risks letting Iran use drawn-out nuclear talks with P5+1 and IAEA as a cover to build a nuclear bomb, Ban said in an interview with the Washington Post. Ban compared the situation to North Korean behavior of exploiting a decade of fitful diplomatic efforts to make progress toward a weapon.

“We should not give much more time to the Iranians, and we should not waste time,” Ban said. “We have seen what happened with the DPRK.” 

“It ended up that they [were] secretly, quietly, without any obligations, without any pressure, making progress,” Ban said. (Washington Post, 15 February)



Ban added that he wants to accelerate diplomatic talks with Iran and give them new urgency to reach a consensus soon.

The U.N. Security Council must “show a firm, decisive and effective, quick response,” Ban said. Adding that he wants that the UNSC makes plain to Iran that the rest of the world is not convinced that it is not seeking nuclear weapons.



Ban revealed that he told Iran’s supreme leader and president last year that he is not satisfied with their assurances that the program is peaceful.

The United States says Iran could assemble a weapon as soon as next year if it chose to do so.