UNSC to hold emergency session on aid delivery to Syria
QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – United Nations diplomatic sources said on Monday that the UN Security Council would hold an emergency session on the mandate of aid delivery mechanism to Syria through Bab al-Hawa border crossing from Turkey.
The sources added that some amendments were made to the Irish-Norwegian draft resolution.
While the sources did not explain the content of those amendments, and said, It is not known whether these amendments will meet Russian demands or not.
Negotiations are continuing at the UN Security Council regarding cross-border aid mechanism to Syria through Bab al-Hawa crossing, without mentioning al- Ya’rubiyah (Tel Kocher) border crossing.
The authorization of aid deliveries through Bab al-Hawa from Turkey, which has been in effect since 2014 and does not require backing from Damascus, expired on July 10, due to Russian-Chinese veto.
Norway and Ireland have drafted a resolution to extend the authorization until July 10, 2023.
While Russia has drafted a six-month extension competing with the draft of Irish-Norwegian one.
Since July 10, 2020, Bab al-Hawa has been the only crossing kept open to UN aid based on the resolution 2533 (2020), while the use of the others was curtailed.
In July 2014, the UN Security Council adopted the Resolution 2165 which authorized the UN to deliver cross-border humanitarian aid to Syria through four crossings al-Ramtha crossing with Jordan, Bab al-Salam, Bab al-Hawa with Turkey, and al Ya’rubiyah (Tel Kocher) with Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI), without the consent of the Syrian government.
According to UN data, 14.6 million Syrians rely on humanitarian assistance, the highest ever recorded. Across Syria, 12 million individuals face acute food insecurity – a staggering 51 percent increase since 2019.