[JURIST] The UN Security Council on Friday adopted [press release] a new resolution which outlines a process to work for peace within Syria. The 15 member council agreed upon a plan which will allow for the UN to take a large role in the Syrian conflict with the hope of ushering in peaceful and a stable government. UN Secretary- General Ban Ki-Moon stated in regards to the agreement, “[a]s the first resolution to focus on the political path to resolving the crisis, this marks a very important step on which we must build.” The new resolution will work to create a new constitution, election system, and cure political instablitly. The UN has also called for the need to continue to combat ISIL and work to cure the Syrian refugee crisis.

The conflict in Syria [JURIST backgrounder] has continued for five years in a civil war based around the legitimacy of President Bashar al-Assad [BBC reports]. Massive numbers of refugees have attempted to flee the fighting by entering Europe, prompting UN officials to urge a global response [JURIST report] to the crisis. Earlier this month the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic [official website] issued its latest report on the civil war in Syria, saying that Syrian civilians are facing war crimes and crimes against humanity [JURIST report] with “no end in sight.”