David Miliband: No prospect for peace without intervention of Obama and Trump

David Miliband has called on President Obama and Donald Trump to raise the pressure on Syria and the regime’s allies over the atrocities being committed against civilians in the war-torn nation.

The head of the International Rescue Committee said the US president, and his successor, must make a rare joint intervention showing that the US will “demand accountability” over the violence in Syria.

Miliband spoke out as MPs used an emergency debate yesterday to call for Britain to do more to provide aid while Jeremy Corbyn asked Theresa May to step up efforts to deliver a ceasefire. Miliband’s brother, Ed, was criticised for his role in blocking British military action against Syria in 2013.

Last night David Miliband, the former foreign secretary, said the US must condemn the bloodshed and demand protection for civilians.

“The IRC is calling for president-elect Trump and president Obama to issue a joint statement indicating that the US will demand accountability for atrocities inside Syria. This will demonstrate that American values and international leadership do not and will not depend on individuals within administrations. It also would signal that the US will demand accountability for attacks on civilians and abuses of humanitarian law wherever and whenever they are found. There is no prospect for peace without it.”

Miliband used a separate statement himself to describe his horror at the way Eastern Aleppo had become a “bloody graveyard” for thousands of innocent people.

In what could be seen as a sideswipe against Western critics of intervention in Syria, he added that it was impossible for decision-makers to claim ignorance of the violence there.

“We cannot say we don’t know what is happening when the victims themselves are tweeting and sending messages out on Skype about the horrors they face. It remains vital for all international voices to demand protection for civilians as part of an end to the fighting.  There are still lives in the balance in Aleppo, and it is vital they are saved, and those fleeing to Idlib require protection.  There has never been more need for effective diplomacy to call a halt to what will come to be seen as a merciless slaughter.”