UN says extending aid delivery mechanism to northwest Syria “crucial”
QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – Extending aid delivery mechanisms to northwest Syria is crucial, as the UN’s cross-border operations remain a vital support system for people in need in the region, UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said on Monday.
“Every month, we and our partners deliver critical assistance and protection services to an average of 2.5 million men, women and children” in Syria, Dujarric said in New York.
On Feb. 10, the Syrian government extended permission for the UN to deliver aid through Bab al-Salama and al-Rai border crossings in northwest Syria for three more months.
In July 2014, the U.N. Security Council (UNSC) adopted Resolution 2165 which authorized cross-border humanitarian aid delivery to Syria through four border crossings including al-Ramtha with Jordan, Bab al-Salama and Bab al-Hawa with Turkey, and Tel Kocher (al-Ya’rubiyah) with Iraq, without the consent of the Syrian government.
In January 2020, the U.N. Res. 2504 reduced the number of border crossings to only Bab al-Salama and Bab al-Hawa for six months open to renewal in a special meeting by the UNSC.
Since July 2020, Bab al-Hawa has been the only crossing kept open to UN aid based on Res. 2533 (2020), while the use of the others was curtailed.
About 5,000 trucks carrying UN aid have crossed from Turkey to northwest Syria through the three aid corridors since then. Moreover, UN personnel have completed more than 350 cross border missions during that timeframe, Dujarric added.