For four years, UN special envoy Staffan de Mistura, who steps down next month, worked tirelessly to bring the Syrian war to an end – a thankless task in the face of world powers working in their own interests to carve out power for themselves. Ultimately, his best efforts were not enough.
When Mr De Mistura took on the role, he inherited a conflict as complex as it was brutal. Myriad militia groups were in their ascendancy and posed a genuine threat to the regime of Bashar Al Assad. ISIS, too, was occupying vast swathes of Syrian land.
The Syria of today is incomparable. The Assad regime has violently reclaimed much of the country, with the help of Russia and Iran. Opposition groups have either reformed or been decimated – as has ISIS – and Mr Al Assad looks more entrenched than ever. In the meantime, more than half a million people have died, millions have been displaced, chemical weapons have been deployed repeatedly and the UN has grown ever feebler.
This transformation might have occurred on Mr De Mistura's watch but he is not solely to blame. Rather, he inherited a poisoned chalice, a job dubbed "mission impossible" by his predecessor Kofi Annan, who only lasted nine months in the role. With the regime disinterested in peace, the meddling of various global powers and the UN Security Council bedevilled by disagreement, the mountain was simply too high for one man to climb.
Mr De Mistura came to the post on the back of a four decade-long UN career encompassing Ethiopia, Bosnia, Iraq and Afghanistan. Those who know him praise his vast reserves of determination and patience. And yet it seems in Syria, he met his match. His first initiative, a six-week ceasefire in Aleppo, collapsed immediately.
But perhaps his greatest failing was attending the Astana talks between Iran, Russia and Turkey, which nullified his own Geneva process and gave the alternative talks the legitimacy needed to eclipse the UN’s role. The recent ceasefire in Idlib was agreed by Ankara and Moscow with no UN involvement. His assertion that the innumerable combatants would eventually tire of fighting and negotiate demonstrated a naivete uncharacteristic for such an experienced envoy. And his fears of alienating the regime prevented him from reining in Mr Al Assad’s worst excesses.
He leaves a mixed legacy and a Syria which sees Mr Al Assad retaining the presidency with even greater powers than before, backed by his sponsors. Mr De Mistura used his final months to push for a new Syrian constitution involving all parties but on Wednesday, Syrian foreign minister Walid Al Moallem warned him against interfering in "sovereign" matters.
And so he resigns his post having failed to bring the parties to the table – and the war to an end. That leaves one troubling question: with even those charged with the task of looking after their best interests abandoning Syrians in their hour of need and admitting defeat, what hope can they have for the future?
Profile of Bitex UAE
Date of launch: November 2018
Founder: Monark Modi
Based: Business Bay, Dubai
Sector: Financial services
Size: Eight employees
Investors: Self-funded to date with $1m of personal savings
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The winners
Fiction
- ‘Amreekiya’ by Lena Mahmoud
- ‘As Good As True’ by Cheryl Reid
The Evelyn Shakir Non-Fiction Award
- ‘Syrian and Lebanese Patricios in Sao Paulo’ by Oswaldo Truzzi; translated by Ramon J Stern
- ‘The Sound of Listening’ by Philip Metres
The George Ellenbogen Poetry Award
- ‘Footnotes in the Order of Disappearance’ by Fady Joudah
Children/Young Adult
- ‘I’ve Loved You Since Forever’ by Hoda Kotb
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
THE LIGHT
Director: Tom Tykwer
Starring: Tala Al Deen, Nicolette Krebitz, Lars Eidinger
Rating: 3/5
APPLE IPAD MINI (A17 PRO)
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Europe’s rearming plan
- Suspend strict budget rules to allow member countries to step up defence spending
- Create new "instrument" providing €150 billion of loans to member countries for defence investment
- Use the existing EU budget to direct more funds towards defence-related investment
- Engage the bloc's European Investment Bank to drop limits on lending to defence firms
- Create a savings and investments union to help companies access capital
Breaking News: The Remaking of Journalism and Why It Matters Now
Alan Rushbridger, Canongate
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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How to avoid crypto fraud
- Use unique usernames and passwords while enabling multi-factor authentication.
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The specs
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Gulf rugby
Who’s won what so far in 2018/19
Western Clubs Champions League: Bahrain
Dubai Rugby Sevens: Dubai Hurricanes
West Asia Premiership: Bahrain
What’s left
UAE Conference
March 22, play-offs:
Dubai Hurricanes II v Al Ain Amblers, Jebel Ali Dragons II v Dubai Tigers
March 29, final
UAE Premiership
March 22, play-offs:
Dubai Exiles v Jebel Ali Dragons, Abu Dhabi Harlequins v Dubai Hurricanes
March 29, final
MATCH INFO
Azerbaijan 0
Wales 2 (Moore 10', Wilson 34')
Unresolved crisis
Russia and Ukraine have been locked in a bitter conflict since 2014, when Ukraine’s Kremlin-friendly president was ousted, Moscow annexed Crimea and then backed a separatist insurgency in the east.
Fighting between the Russia-backed rebels and Ukrainian forces has killed more than 14,000 people. In 2015, France and Germany helped broker a peace deal, known as the Minsk agreements, that ended large-scale hostilities but failed to bring a political settlement of the conflict.
The Kremlin has repeatedly accused Kiev of sabotaging the deal, and Ukrainian officials in recent weeks said that implementing it in full would hurt Ukraine.
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League last-16, second leg:
Real Madrid 1 (Asensio 70'), Ajax 4 (Ziyech 7', Neres 18', Tadic 62', Schone 72')
Ajax win 5-3 on aggregate
