UN Syria envoy Staffan de Mistura to step down in November

UN special envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mistura, has announced he will step down at the end of November after more than four years in the key post.

The Italian-Swedish diplomat, who became the UN’s third Syria envoy in July 2014, told the UN Security Council on Wednesday he was leaving for “purely personal reasons”. 

“I am not laying down the charge until the last hour of the last day of my mandate,” he said.

De Mistura said he will be making an intensive effort to get agreement on a committee to draft a new constitution for war-torn Syria before he resigns next month.

Objections by the Syrian government are still holding up the launch of the committee, he said.

He reiterated that there is agreement on 50-member government and opposition delegations – but the government objects to the 50-member delegation the UN put together representing Syrian experts, civil society, independents, tribal leaders and women.

De Mistura said will go to Damascus next week to discuss the committee’s formation.