New York (dpa) – The UN Security Council on Thursday unanimously called on Syria to allow “immediate, full and unimpeded” access for humanitarian personnel to the embattled country. The 15-nation council called for “all parties in Syria, and in particular the Syrian authorities,” to “cooperate fully with the UN and relevant humanitarian organizations” to “allow the evacuation of the wounded from affected areas.” The council president for March, British Ambassador Mark Lyall Grant, read the statement adopted by the council after it discussed the country's dire situation. He said it was the first statement focusing only on the humanitarian crisis, rather than the wider political issues in Syria. The statement reflected the “frustration and disappointment” of all council members that UN Emergency Relief Coordinator Valerie Amos has not been given access to Syria, Grant said. Amos has repeatedly asked Damascus to allow her to visit so she can discuss the humanitarian situation. But Syrian authorities have not yet agreed on a date to meet with her. In Damascus, Saleh Dabbikeh, the spokesman of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), told dpa that Syrian authorities have “given the green light to the committee and the Syrian Red crescent to enter Baba Amr on Friday.” Baba Amr, an opposition stronghold, fell to government control on Thursday and it was feared that troops loyal to Damascus would carry out reprisals against anti-Assad forces. The bodies of two western journalists, US citizen Marie Colvin and French photographer Remi Ochlik, who were killed during shelling of the area last week, remain in the Baba Amr area. BM ShortURL: http://goo.gl/oTey6 Tags: Aid Workers, Syria, UN Section: Human Rights, Latest News, Syria
