UN studying Syria aid approval before resuming deliveries

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) – The United Nations has yet to resume the use of a closed border crossing for delivering aid to northwest Syria from Turkey. This comes after Syria stated that the crossing could be used for another six months following the expiration of the U.N. Security Council approval for the route on Monday.

In a letter addressed to the Security Council, Syria’s U.N. Ambassador Bassam Sabbagh wrote that the U.N. aid deliveries would need to be conducted “in full cooperation and coordination with the Syrian Government”.

On Friday, U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric stated that the U.N. is currently reviewing the letter and consulting with various partners. He added, “That being said, we are committed to delivering life-saving assistance to millions of people in need in northwest Syria, guided by humanitarian principles and utilizing all available means and delivery modalities.”

Since 2014, the operation based in Turkey has been providing humanitarian aid to millions of people in rebel-held northwest Syria. However, the Syrian government, which did not previously approve of the U.N. operation, granted the use of the Bab al-Hawa crossing after the U.N. Security Council failed to renew its authorization this week, as Russia vetoed a proposed nine-month extension.

Dujarric mentioned, “We had prepositioned a lot of material in the area before the deadline. So we do have humanitarian aid in place, but obviously we want to get things going as quickly as we can.”

With concerns of President Bashar al-Assad potentially restricting much-needed aid, Syrians who fled his rule fear the establishment of control over U.N. assistance in the rebel-held northwest, which is the last major stronghold of the Syrian opposition.

Dujarric emphasized, “Our guiding principle in Syria and everywhere else is our commitment to delivering humanitarian assistance guided by humanitarian principles of non-interference, of impartiality.”

The civil war in Syria began in 2011 with a violent crackdown on peaceful pro-democracy protesters by Assad. Moscow has supported Assad, while Washington has backed the opposition. The conflict has led to millions of people fleeing Syria, with millions more internally displaced. Assad is now in control of the majority of the country, and the fighting has significantly decreased.

(Reporting by Michelle Nichols; Editing by Josie Kao)