There's one big problem with the State Department's Syrian ceasefire violation hotline

This needs to get fixed.
(Image credit: Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

A U.N.-brokered ceasefire went into effect in Syria on Saturday and in order to monitor violations, the U.S. State Department set up a hotline. Only, the people manning the line don't actually appear to speak fluent Arabic.

In one instance, a reporter for the non-profit journalism organization Syria Direct tried calling in violations in Aleppo, Homs, and a number of other sites. "I didn't expect an American to answer," reporter Orion Wilcox said. "He answered in English but switched to Arabic. I started telling him in Arabic about the reports we were getting from Homs province of specific ceasefire violations... He's really struggling and can't understand me. I'm like, Why is this American guy on the phone who can't speak Arabic? I'd give a detailed account of something happening in Homs province and he would listen and his answer was: 'Homs.'"

In another instance, reporter Osama Abu Zeid tried making a call only to be told he had the "wrong number."

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

Osama redialed the same number, and another employee answered the call."Ok sir, I'm a Syrian journalist and I'd like to report a breach of the hudna [ceasefire] involving multiple airstrikes in the countryside south of Hama city — at the area where Hama governorate meets northern Homs province," Osama said.[...] During the four-minute phone call, the operator struggled to ask basic questions regarding the incident.At one point, when attempting to ask Osama if the strikes had resulted in any casualties, the operator instead said what appeared to be an accidental string of expletives. [Syria Direct]

Another activist said he no longer reports breaches to the State Department, citing a similar incident. "We attempted to call the [Department of State's hotline], but we don't think they understood what we were saying," activist Abu Odei al-Homsi said.

"We are mindful and working to address the difficulties that some have experienced when calling in to convey reports of violations in Arabic," a State Department official said Wednesday.

Explore More
Jeva Lange

Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.