UN Chief: Syria Unrest Could Have Global Impact
The “extremely dangerous” conflict in Syria could have global repercussions, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said Wednesday, as fresh violence erupted and an al-Qaida-inspired group claimed responsibility for two suicide bombings in Damascus.
The uprising that began a year ago has transformed into an armed insurgency that many fear is pushing the country toward civil war. Because of Syria’s close alliances with Iran and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, there are deep concerns that the violence could spread beyond the country’s borders, especially if other nations arm the rebels or send in their own troops.
“We do not know how events will unfold,” Ban said during a speech in the Indonesian capital, Jakarta. “But we do know that we all have a responsibility to work for a resolution of this profound and extremely dangerous crisis … that has potentially massive repercussions for the region and the world.”
His comments came as the previously divided U.N. Security Council united to approve a nonbinding statement calling on the Syrian government and opposition to immediately implement proposals by international envoy Kofi Annan to end the bloodshed.
Syrian activists reported shelling by government in forces in hotspots including the central province of Homs, and fighting between army defectors and soldiers in Damascus suburbs.
Large-scale bombings near government security buildings in the capital, Damascus, and the northern city of Aleppo have added a new and increasingly deadly element to the revolt.
U.S. intelligence officials have pointed to al-Qaida in Iraq as the likely culprit, raising the possibility its fighters are infiltrating across the border to take advantage of the turmoil.
In a statement posted Wednesday on a militant website, an Islamist group called the Al-Nusra Front to Protect the Levant claimed responsibility for twin suicide bombings in Damascus on Saturday. The blasts, which targeted the air force intelligence building and the criminal security department, killed at least 27 people, the state-run news agency said.
“It’s looking more and more like Al-Nusra is just a front for AQI in Syria,” a U.S. official said Wednesday, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss matters of intelligence.
The Associated Press could not verify the authenticity of Wednesday’s Al-Nusra statement, which said the attacks were in retaliation for the Syrian regime’s shelling of residential areas in opposition strongholds in Homs, Idlib, Hama and Daraa.