UN, Jan 9 access in Syria, both through the mechanism of cross-border delivery of humanitarian aid, and through the lines of contact, as well as to actively invest in early recovery projects, said in a comment by the official representative of Secretary General Stefan Dujarric.
Earlier, the UN Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution to extend until July 10, 2023 the mechanism for the cross-border delivery of humanitarian aid to the SAR.
The Secretary General took note of the decision of the Security Council. According to him, the lives of 4.1 million people in northwestern Syria depend on cross-border delivery.
As Dujarric pointed out, humanitarian needs in the SAR are at their highest level since the conflict began in 2011.
«Humanitarian access in Syria, including through cross-border operations and operations to deliver humanitarian aid across the lines of contact, must be expanded, and humanitarian activities must be intensified through investment in early recovery projects,» Dujarric cited Guterres' position.
The regime of simplified delivery of humanitarian and medical cargo to Syria from neighboring states (primarily across the border with Turkey) through border crossings has been in effect since 2014. This mechanism is renewed annually. Within its framework, UN humanitarian agencies and their partners were initially entitled to use routes across the confrontation lines and four border checkpoints: Bab es-Salam and Bab al-Hawa (both on the border of Syria and Turkey), Al- Yarubiya» (on the border with Iraq) and «Al-Ramta» (on the border with Jordan). As the Syrian army began to establish control over more and more territory, Damascus and Moscow began to advocate the gradual curtailment of border crossings.
On January 10, 2023, the work of the only remaining (under the mechanism) Bab al-Hawa border crossing on the Syrian border expired. Today, its action was extended for six months.