UN Envoy Angelina Jolie Pleads For Syrian Refugees, Condemns World Body For Failing To Act
Angelina Jolie, Academy Award winning actress and UN Special Envoy, criticized the world body for failing to act in Syria and defend the millions of refugees fleeing the conflict.
Jolie spoke to the Security Council and urged the world powers to act quickly to stop the horror that has killed and displaced so many, according to USA Today. Angelina accused world powers of merely “standing by” as millions were displaced.
“We cannot look at Syria, and the evil that has arisen from the ashes of indecision, and think this is not the lowest point in the world’s inability to protect and defend the innocent.”
Angelina was appointed the Special Representative on the Afghan refugee situation following a decade’s service as goodwill ambassador for the UN High Commissioner for Refugees in Pakistan and Iran, according to the Inquisitr.
Jolie’s good looks and powerful personality may have distracted some members of the council from her message Friday, according to USA Today.
“She’s beautiful,” Syria’s ambassador told the Associated Press after Jolie’s speech.
Hopefully other members were paying more attention, as Angelina’s statements come before the council begins to hear peace talk details next month in Geneva, according to Fox News.
Jolie said she has visited Syria 11 times and urged each of the Security Council members to visit the war-torn country and see the situation for themselves.
The council has so far failed to intervene in the Syrian crisis because Russia and China have vetoed multiple attempts at stopping the catastrophe.
As Jolie continued her tirade dressing down the world’s powers, she also condemned them for allowing hundreds of refugees to drown just off Europe’s coast.
“It is sickening to see thousands of refugees drowning on the doorstep of the world’s wealthiest continent. No one risks the lives of their children in this way except out of utter desperation.”
Nearly 1,000 people are feared to have drowned recently after a migrant smuggler’s boat capsized and sank last week off Italy’s coast, with another 300 meeting a watery death before that.
As many as 10,000 migrants are smuggled into Italy every week, according to the Express, and their numbers are starting to overwhelm the country.
An estimated 3.9 million refugees have fled Syria for neighboring countries and the UN needs to do more to protect them, Jolie told Yahoo News.
“The purpose of the UN is to prevent and end conflict, to bring countries together, to find diplomatic solutions and to save lives. We failed to do this in Syria.”
[Photo by Eamonn M. McCormack/Getty Images]
