BRUSSELS: The United Nations urged international donors to pledge up to $10 billion on Tuesday to help Syrians fleeing a decade of civil war in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, saying that the need for humanitarian support has never been so great.
In the fifth annual conference to keep Syrians refugees from starvation, the event hosted by the European Union will seek $4.2 billion for people inside Syria and $5.8 billion for refugees and their hosts in the Middle East.
Some 24 million people need basic aid, a rise of four million over the past year and the highest number yet since a crackdown on pro-democracy protesters by Syrian President Bashar Assad in 2011 led to civil war.
“I call on you to help us address rising needs and to step up your financial and humanitarian commitments,” United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in a video message.
“Syria’s economy has been ravaged and now the impacts of COVID-19 have made things worse. Almost half of all families lost their source of income. Nine in ten Syrians is living in poverty,” he said.
Sweden was one of the first donors to pledge increased support at a time when countries around the world have less money to donate as COVID-19 devastates their economies.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken late on Monday called for Syria’s borders to be kept open to allow unhindered access and the free flow of aid.
Fighting between Syrian army forces and rebels has subsided since a deal a year ago ended a Russian-led bombing campaign that had displaced over a million people, but Russian air strikes, along with Iranian and Syrian-backed militaries, continue to attack rebel outposts.
In a separate statement, the Red Cross Red Crescent Movement urged international donors to help rebuild Syria, particularly to repair critical health, water and electricity services.
“Our infrastructure is ruined,” said Khaled Hboubati, the Syrian Arab Red Crescent Society.
Rebuilding destroyed cities will take billions of dollars more and cannot start until powers involved in the conflict, including Russia, Turkey and Iran, help agree a peace settlement, the European Union says.
International Committee of the Red Cross head Peter Maurer urged world powers to reach a peace deal or face many more annual donor conferences for Syria. “Humanitarians are here to help but the ultimate responsibility lies with parties to the conflict,” he said.
UN seeks $10 billion for Syrians as humanitarian needs soar
https://arab.news/ruw4p
UN seeks $10 billion for Syrians as humanitarian needs soar
- As Syrians devastated by 10 years of civil war, aid agencies plead for more money, peace deal
- Fifth annual Brussels conference takes place online
Gaza fuel running short after Israel closes borders amid Iran war
- Israel’s military closed all Gaza border crossings on Saturday after announcing air strikes on Iran carried out jointly with the US
- Israeli authorities say the crossings cannot be operated safely during war
CAIRO/JERUSALEM: Gaza is rapidly running out of its limited fuel supply and stocks of food staples may become tight, officials say, after Israel blocked the entry of fuel and goods into the war-shattered territory, citing fighting with Iran.
Israel’s military closed all Gaza border crossings on Saturday after announcing air strikes on Iran carried out jointly with the United States. Israeli authorities say the crossings cannot be operated safely during war and have not said how long they would be shut.
Few days’ worth of supplies
Gaza is wholly dependent on fuel brought in by trucks from Israel and Egypt and a lack of fresh supplies would put hospital operations at risk and threaten water and sanitation services, local officials say. Most Palestinians in Gaza are internally displaced after Israel’s two-year war with Hamas militants.
“I expect we have maybe a couple of days’ running time,” said United Nations official Karuna Herrmann, who directs fuel distribution in Gaza.
Amjad Al-Shawa, a Palestinian aid leader in Gaza, who works with the UN and NGOs, estimated fuel supplies could last three or four days, while stocks of vegetables, flour, and other essentials could also soon run out if the crossings remain shut.
Reuters was unable to independently verify those estimates.
Israel’s COGAT military agency, which controls access to Gaza, said that enough food had been delivered to the territory since the start of an October truce to provide for the population.
“(The) existing stock is expected to suffice for an extended period,” COGAT said, without elaborating. It declined to comment on potential fuel shortages.
The truce was part of broader US-backed plan to end the war that involves reopening the Rafah border crossing with Egypt, increasing the flow of aid into the enclave, and rebuilding it.
Hamada Abu Laila, a displaced Palestinian in Gaza, said the closures were stoking fear of a return of famine, which gripped parts of the enclave last year after Israel blocked aid deliveries for 11 weeks.
“Why is it our fault, in Gaza, with regional wars between Israel, Iran, and America? It is not our fault,” Abu Laila said.
