QUNEITRA: Ghassan Al-Sayyid Ahmad, governor of Syria’s Quneitra region, called on the UN peacekeeping force to monitor and document Israeli violations during a recent meeting with the UN Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations, Jean-Pierre Lacroix.
The talks focused on the impact of Israeli actions on residents of villages near the separation line and ways to strengthen coordination with the UN mission.
Ahmad urged the UN Disengagement Observer Force to fulfil its responsibilities under international resolutions and accurately document violations to help protect residents and limit humanitarian and economic damage.
Rawad Ghanem, director of the governorate’s international cooperation directorate, said the meeting also addressed the issues of detainees, alleged arbitrary detentions, incursions into homes, bulldozing of agricultural land, and damage to infrastructure.
During a separate meeting with local administrators and community representatives, Lacroix heard testimonies from families about the detention of their relatives and the hardships they said they had faced.
Participants also discussed damage to agriculture, shortages of resources and difficulties facing farmers and livestock breeders, including threats to their livelihoods.
The peacekeeping mission was established in May, 1974, and monitors implementation of the 1974 disengagement agreement between Syrian Arab Republic and Israel.
Separately, Syrian Finance Minister Mohammed Yisr Barnieh recently discussed enhancing financial and economic cooperation between the Syria and Qatar with his Qatari counterpart, Ali bin Ahmed Al-Kuwari.
The two, who met on the sidelines of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank Group’s annual meetings in Bangkok, also talked about Qatar’s support of recovery and development efforts in the country.
The Ministry of Finance said Barnieh expressed the Syrian government’s appreciation of Qatar’s support and assistance in advancing financial reforms and development projects. The minister stressed the importance of strengthening cooperation in the coming phase in line with national priorities, contributing to improved public services and living conditions for citizens.