By ,
Published December 18, 2016
The United Nations diplomats told Fox News that the U.N. Security Council is expected to vote on a French-drafted resolution on Sunday.
The council scheduled consultations on Sunday morning on the resolution followed by an open meeting where members are expected to vote.
The draft resolution would authorize immediate and unconditional access for the U.N. and its partners to besieged parts of Aleppo and throughout Syria to ensure the delivery of humanitarian aid.
The draft resolution calls on Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to immediately redeploy U.N. staff already on the ground to carry out "neutral monitoring" to ensure the "protection of civilians inside Aleppo.” The resolution also calls on the staff for "direct observation and to report on evacuations."
It stresses that evacuations of civilians "must be voluntary and to destinations of their choice."
The U.S. and other western allies on the council support the French initiative.
Russia's U.N. Ambassador Vitaly Churkin said Friday he would examine the draft but was skeptical that monitors could be deployed quickly.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
https://www.foxnews.com/world/u-n-security-council-expected-to-vote-on-humanitarian-aid-to-aleppo