6. Permanent Ceasefires

• The primary priority is the protection of civilians. Shelling must cease immediately on both sides. There should be an immediate unconditional and sustained ceasefire. Military concentrations should be pulled back from population centers;
• External governments must stop supplying weapons and military equipment to the two sides (regime and opposition) and the many armed groups;
• International peacekeeping forces made up of UN and Arabic forces should be deployed across the country to: (i) watch the borders to prevent weapons and foreign combatants coming across the Turkey, Jordan, Lebanon and Iraqi borders into Syria; (ii) keep peace on the interfaces between the two warring sides and different warring groups; (iii) monitor violations, shelling and firing in both opposition and regime areas through civilian ‘blue hat’ UN peacekeepers; and
• The UN peacekeepers and other mechanisms to maintain peace must have an engagement strategy to consult and work with CSOs on peacekeeping problems and solutions for civilians, including women’s CSOs and the CSOs looking after the interests of children.