Annan
Says Weapons
To Be Put Down
by Gov't,
Opposition
&
"Others" - AQ?
By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS,
April 22 --
Early Sunday
morning Kofi
Annan issued a
statement in
his own name
that "I urge
all forces
whether
governmental,
opposition or
others to put
down their
weapons and
work
with the
United Nations
monitors."
One
wondered,
what
forces with
weapons are
these
"others,"
neither
governmental
or opposition?
Inner
City Press
has asked
Annan's
spokesman
Ahmad Fawzi
"what is meant
by these
'other' forces
that are
different than
the
'opposition.'
Some could
see it as a
reference to
Al Qaeda or
other
non-Syrian
fighters. Is
that what is
meant?"
If
that is the
reference, it
seems strange
to also call
on these
"other"
forces to
"work with the
UN monitors."
What would Al
Qaeda
say? "We want
to work with
the UN -
please send us
to UNAMA in
Afghanistan"?
The
work schedule
of the
monitors is
also in
question. On
April 20 Inner
City Press
asked
US State
Department
Spokeperson
Victoria
Nuland:
Inner
City
Press: The
Moroccan
colonel who’s
leading the UN
team there
now has been
quoted that
he’s not going
to take his
team out on
Fridays. He
doesn’t want
to be used
politically.
There’s a
quote
to that
effect. And
I’m just
wondering,
since it seems
that one of
the purposes
of the
observer
mission is to
allow people
to protest,
and that’s a
big day they
want to
protest, what
would the U.S.
think of that?
MS.
NULAND:
Well, first of
all, I haven’t
seen the
comments of
the
Moroccan lead.
As I said, all
of the
modalities for
these
peacekeepers
are being
reviewed based
on the
experience of
the
initial group,
and they have
to be worked
out through a
new Security
Council
resolution,
and obviously,
we have to see
how it goes on
the
ground.
Transcript
here.
More has been
written since,
about the
Colonel's
comments. So
Inner City
Press has
asked Fawzi:
"do
you
have a comment
or gloss on
the Moroccan
colonel saying
the
observers
would go out
on Fridays, to
not be used?
On Friday I
asked
the US State
Department,
particularly
in light of
Friday being
a/the
big protest
day, but they
hadn't yet
seen the
quote. Can you
comment
or explain the
Colonel's
statement?"
When
these
questions are
answered, it
will be
published
here. Watch
this site.
, 
