Security Council resolution 2191 (2014) [on renewal of the decisions in paras. 2 and 3 of Security Council resolution 2165 (2014) for a period of 12 months until 10 Jan. 2016]
Symbol: S/RES/2191 (2014)
Date: 2014-12-17
Status: adopted
Agenda: S/69 [222] SYRIAN ARAB REPUBLIC SITUATION
S/ X The situation in the Middle East.
Subjects: UN. Monitoring Mechanism Established pursuant to Security Council Resolution 2165 (2014)|Joint Special Envoy of the United Nations and the League of Arab States on the Syrian Crisis|HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE|RELIEF CORRIDORS|SYRIAN ARAB REPUBLIC|INTERNATIONAL HUMANITARIAN LAW
Votes in favour: 15
Votes against: 0
Abstentions: 0
Voting record:
country: ARGENTINA
vote: yes
country: AUSTRALIA
vote: yes
country: CHAD
vote: yes
country: CHILE
vote: yes
country: CHINA
vote: yes
country: FRANCE
vote: yes
country: JORDAN
vote: yes
country: LITHUANIA
vote: yes
country: LUXEMBOURG
vote: yes
country: NIGERIA
vote: yes
country: REPUBLIC OF KOREA
vote: yes
country: RUSSIAN FEDERATION
vote: yes
country: RWANDA
vote: yes
country: UNITED KINGDOM
vote: yes
country: UNITED STATES
vote: yes

               United Nations                                                                    S/RES/2191 (2014)
               Security Council                                                 Distr.: General
                                                                                17 December 2014




               Resolution 2191 (2014)
               Adopted by the Security Council at its 7344th meeting, on
               17 December 2014

                    The Security Council,
                    Recalling its resolutions 2042 (2012), 2043 (2012), 2118 (2013), 2139 (2014),
               2165 (2014) and 2175 (2014), and its Presidential Statements of 3 August 2011
               (S/PRST/2011/16), 21 March 2012 (S/PRST/2012/6), 5 April 2012 (S/PRST/2012/10)
               and 2 October 2013 (S/PRST/2013/15),
                     Reaffirming its strong commitment to the sovereignty, independence, unity and
               territorial integrity of Syria, and to the purposes and principles of the Charter of the
               United Nations,
                     Expressing outrage at the unacceptable and escalating level of violence and
               the killing of more than 191,000 people, including well over 10,000 children, as a
               result of the Syrian conflict, as reported by the Secretary-General of the United
               Nations and his Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict,
                     Gravely distressed by the continued deterioration of the devastating
               humanitarian situation in Syria and by the fact that now more than 12.2 million
               people in Syria — of whom 7.6 million are internally displaced, 4.5 million are
               living in hard-to-reach areas and 212,000 are trapped in besieged areas, including
               Palestinian refugees — require urgent humanitarian assistance, including medical
               assistance, and noting with concern that approximately one million more people
               have been displaced within Syria since the adoption of resolution 2165 (2014),
                     Gravely concerned at the lack of effective implementation of its resolutions
               2139 (2014) and 2165 (2014) by the parties to the Syrian domestic conflict,
               recalling in this regard their legal obligations under international humanitarian law
               and international human rights law, as well as all the relevant decisions of the
               Security Council, including by ceasing all attacks against civilians and civilian
               objects, including those involving attacks on schools, medical facilities and the
               deliberate interruptions of water supply, the indiscriminate use of weapons,
               including artillery, barrel bombs and air strikes, indiscriminate shelling by mortars,
               car bombs, suicide attacks and tunnel bombs, as well as the use of starvation of
               civilians as a method of combat, including by the besiegement of populated areas,
               and the widespread use of torture, ill-treatment, arbitrary executions, extrajudicial



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               killings, enforced disappearances, sexual and gender-based violence as well as all
               grave violations and abuses committed against children,
                     Expressing its grave concern that areas of Syria are under the control of the
               Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) and Al Nusrah Front (ANF) and about
               the negative impact of their presence, violent extremist ideology and actions on
               stability in Syria and the region, including the devastating humanitarian impact on
               the civilian populations which has led to the displacement of hundreds of thousands
               of people, reaffirming its resolve to address all aspects of the threat posed by ISIL,
               ANF and all other individuals, groups, undertakings and entities associated with
               Al-Qaida, and calling for the implementation of Security Council resolutions 2170
               (2014) and 2178 (2014), and its Presidential Statement of 28 July 2014
               (S/PRST/2014/14),
                    Strongly condemning the arbitrary detention and torture of civilians in Syria,
               notably in prisons and detention facilities, as well as the kidnappings, abductions,
               hostage taking and forced disappearances, and demanding the immediate end of
               these practices and the release of all arbitrarily detained persons starting with
               women and children, as well as sick, wounded and elderly people including United
               Nations and humanitarian personnel and journalists,
                     Recalling its strong condemnation in resolution 2175 (2014) of all forms of
               violence and intimidation to which those participating in humanitarian operations
               are increasingly exposed, as well as attacks on humanitarian convoys and acts of
               destruction and looting of their assets, and its urging of all parties involved in an
               armed conflict to promote the safety, security and freedom of movement of
               humanitarian personnel and United Nations and its associated personnel and their
               assets, and urging that all parties to the Syrian domestic conflict must take all
               appropriate steps to ensure the safety and security of United Nations and associated
               personnel, those of its specialized agencies, and all other personnel engaged in
               humanitarian relief activities,
                     Noting that, despite all the challenges, the United Nations and their
               implementing partners continue to deliver life-saving assistance to millions of
               people in need, and taking note that hard-to-reach locations in Aleppo, Idleb,
               Quneitra and Dar’a have been reached since the adoption of resolution 2165 (2014)
               through humanitarian aid delivered across borders, stressing however in this regard
               that most people in hard-to-reach and besieged areas remain difficult for the United
               Nations and their implementing partners to reach with humanitarian assistance,
                     Expressing deep concern at the continuing and new impediments to the
               delivery of humanitarian assistance across borders and across conflict lines,
               encouraging the United Nations humanitarian agencies and their implementing
               partners to take steps to scale up humanitarian deliveries into hard-to-reach and
               besieged areas, including by using, as effectively as possible, border crossings under
               resolution 2165 (2014), and noting that the United Nations monitoring mechanism is
               operational and continuing its activities, including monitoring shipments and
               confirming their humanitarian nature, in accordance with resolution 2165 (2014),
                     Reaffirming the need to support the United Nations humanitarian agencies and
               their implementing partners in their efforts to expand the delivery of humanitarian
               assistance to reach all people in need in Syria, and further reaffirming its decision in
               resolution 2165 (2014) that all Syrian parties to the conflict shall enable the



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           immediate and unhindered delivery of humanitarian assistance directly to people
           throughout Syria, by the United Nations humanitarian agencies and their
           implementing partners, on the basis of United Nations assessments of need and
           devoid of any political prejudices and aims, including by immediately removing all
           impediments to the provision of humanitarian assistance,
                 Noting the role that ceasefire agreements which are consistent with
           humanitarian principles and international humanitarian law can play in facilitating
           the delivery of humanitarian assistance in order to help save civilian lives,
                 Recalling the need for all parties to respect the relevant provisions of
           international humanitarian law and the United Nations guiding principles of
           humanitarian emergency assistance,
                Expressing grave concern at the more than 3.2 million refugees, including
           more than 2.5 million women and children, who have fled Syria as a result of
           ongoing violence, and recognizing that the continued deterioration of the
           humanitarian situation in Syria is further contributing to the movement of refugees
           and poses risks to regional stability,
                 Reiterating its deep appreciation for the significant and admirable efforts that
           have been made by the countries of the region, notably Lebanon, Jordan, Turkey,
           Iraq and Egypt, to accommodate Syrian refugees, including the approximately
           400,000 refugees who have fled Syria since the adoption of resolution 2165 (2014),
           and mindful of the immense costs and social challenges incurred by these countries
           as a consequence of the crisis,
                 Noting with concern that the international response to the Syrian and regional
           crisis continues to fall short of meeting the needs as assessed by host governments
           and the United Nations, therefore urging once again all Member States, based on
           burden-sharing principles, to support the United Nations and the countries of the
           region, including by adopting medium and long-term responses to alleviate the
           impact on communities, providing increased, flexible and predictable funding as
           well as increasing resettlement efforts, and taking note in this regard of the Berlin
           Communiqué of 28 October 2014,
                 Noting with grave concern that impunity in Syria contributes to widespread
           violations and abuses of human rights and violations of international humanitarian
           law, stressing the need to end impunity for these violations and abuses, and
           re-emphasizing in this regard the need that those who have committed or are
           otherwise responsible for such violations and abuses in Syria must be brought to
           justice,
                 Emphasizing that the humanitarian situation will continue to deteriorate
           further in the absence of a political solution to the crisis,
                Determining that the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Syria continues to
           constitute a threat to peace and security in the region,
                 Underscoring that Member States are obligated under Article 25 of the Charter
           of the United Nations to accept and carry out the Council’s decisions,
                1.   Demands that all parties to the Syrian domestic conflict, in particular the
           Syrian authorities, immediately comply with their obligations under international
           humanitarian law and international human rights law, and fully and immediately



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               implement all the provisions of Security Council resolutions 2139 (2014) and 2165
               (2014) and the Presidential Statement of 2 October 2013 (S/PRST/2013/15), and
               recalls that some of the violations and abuses committed in Syria may amount to
               war crimes and crimes against humanity;
                    2.   Decides to renew the decisions in paragraphs two and three of Security
               Council resolution 2165 (2014) for a period of twelve months, that is, until
               10 January 2016;
                    3.    Decides to conduct six months after the renewal of these decisions a
               review of the implementation of paragraph two of this resolution;
                     4.    Expresses its full support for the Special Envoy of the Secretary-General
               for Syria, Mr. Staffan de Mistura, looks forward in particular to further advice from
               the Special Envoy concerning his proposals aimed at reducing violence, including
               through the implementation of freeze zones, emphasizes that if the violence in Syria
               continues to escalate, the humanitarian situation will continue to worsen, and
               reiterates that the only sustainable solution to the current crisis in Syria is through
               an inclusive and Syrian-led political process that meets the legitimate aspirations of
               the Syrian people, with a view to full implementation of the Geneva Communiqué
               of 30 June 2012 endorsed as annex II of its resolution 2118 (2013);
                    5.   Requests the Secretary-General to report to the Council on the
               implementation of this resolution, and on compliance by all parties to the Syrian
               domestic conflict, within the framework of its reporting on resolutions 2139 (2014)
               and 2165 (2014);
                    6.   Reaffirms that it will take further measures under the Charter of the
               United Nations in the event of non-compliance with this resolution or resolution
               2139 (2014) or 2165 (2014) by any party to the Syrian domestic conflict;
                    7.    Decides to remain actively seized of the matter.




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