As Syria Names 10 Dead Foreign Fighters, [DPKO] to Damascus

By Matthew Russell Lee, Exclusive

UNITED NATIONS, May 16, modified May 17, 8am -- Back on May 10 Syrian Ambassador Bashar Ja'afari told Inner City Press that among 10 foreign fighters killed in his country were nationals of France and the UK. Now Inner City Press has obtained Syria's list, in Arabic, and puts it online here.

  The nationalities listed also include, as did the 26 "detained Arab nationals" previously published, mostly Tunisians, as well as a Saudi, an Egyptian and some dual citizens. One source mused that the Egyptian, from his named, "seems like a Christian, very strange." We will see what the Security Council and its Counter Terrorism Committee do about these lists.

  On May 16 in front of the Security Council UK Ambassador Mark Lyall Grant told the press that in the coming days Jean-Marie "Guehenno and DPKO," the UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations, will go to Damascus, on the political track, with it was hoped Kofi Annan to follow.

  Later on May 16, Inner City Press was informed that the request was made for DPKO [names removed at demand of UN Secretariat] unnamed, on the issue of the observers, not the political track. [Material removed at demand of UN Secretariat]

  Inner City Press asked Ban Ki-moon's spokesman Martin Nesirky about Rastan:

Subject: Your questions on Rastan (Syria)
From: UN Spokesperson - Do Not Reply [at] un.org
Date: Tue, May 15, 2012
To: Matthew.Lee [at] innercitypress.com

On Rastan, we can say the following:

The UN Supervision Mission in Syria (UNSMIS) reports that heavy fighting took place yesterday in Tal Biseh and Rastan and UN military observers witnessed that a highway in the area had been blocked by Government forces. A UN military observer patrol helped to de-escalate the situation and get the highway opened after interaction with Government Forces.

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