国际英语资讯:UN envoy warns of escalation in and beyond Syria_时事

国际英语资讯:UN envoy warns of escalation in and beyond Syria

The Islamic State terrorist group launched new operations inside Syria -- in rural Damascus and in remote areas on the Iraqi border, he said.

In Afrin, where Turkey is pursuing a military campaign against Kurds, the conflict may also spread to other areas, he warned.

"What we are seeing is an escalation before an (even bigger) escalation."

The first priority must be the protection of civilians -- from the conflict, chemical weapons and hunger, he said, calling for humanitarian access throughout Syria so that people in need can be reached.

Continued allegations of the use of chemical agents are of extremely grave concern and must be independently and urgently investigated, he told the Security Council. "I urge the Security Council ... to, or God's sake, ensure a mechanism is found to investigate those allegations and attribute responsibility."

Any confirmed use of chemical weapons is abhorrent and requires a thorough investigation, he said.

While several states had alluded that the Syrian government was responsible for the chemical attack in Douma, others -- including the Syrian government itself -- had called those claims a fabrication, he said. "That was yet one more reason for a thorough investigation."

Another UN official also called for the establishment of an investigative mechanism for chemical weapons use in Syria.

"The use of chemical weapons is unjustifiable. Those responsible must be held to account," Thomas Markram, deputy to UN Undersecretary-General for Disarmament Affairs Izumi Nakamitsu, told the Security Council in a briefing.