US hotline for Syria ceasefire lost in translation

US State Department struggles to provide staff who are fluent enough in Arabic to receive reports of ceasefire breaches.

The State Department said the Arabic language skills of some of the operators "weren't properly vetted"

A 24-hour hotline set up by the US State Department for people in Syria to report alleged violations of a ceasefire agreement, has faced serious language hurdles.

The State Department said on Wednesday that it was working to provide operators who were fluent enough in Arabic to hold proper conversations with callers to the hotline, which was established on February 27 when the truce came into effect, and accurately log the allegations.


Syrians can also report truce breaches to the State Department through email, text, and Google Voice. They can also issue complaints to the United Nations.

The international community is trying to monitor a nationwide ceasefire between Syrian rebel groups and the Russian-backed Damascus government that was agreed upon last week, but opposition groups have accused the other side of breaching it with heavy attacks across the country.