UN Monitors Fault Both Sides for Escalating Syria Violence

Observers 'Pull Back' as Violence Threatens Mission

To hear Western officials talk, the rising violence in Syria is entirely the fault of the regime. If you listen to Russian officials, it is entirely the rebels who are to blame.

Gen. Robert Mood, the head of the UN monitoring mission, weighed in on the matter today, however, pointing out that both sides are to blame for escalating violence and that neither side seems particularly interested in the transition anymore.

Making matters worse, the fighting is taking place in cities, with both sides racking up significant civilian casualties in their assorted attacks and, according to UN officials, the monitors are being forced to pull back because it is just too dangerous to go certain places.

The monitors insisted that it wasn’t a formal pullback but a temporary one, and that they were hoping that the situation on the ground would stabilize and allow them to resume monitoring missions nationwide.

Syrian rebel mouthpiece the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights blasted the monitors again today, saying that they should “either work on stopping the killings or leave.” The rebels were condemning the ceasefire virtually from the day it began.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.