According to the United Nations, more than 50,000 people were killed in the devastating February earthquakes in Turkiye and Syria. In Syria, more than 6,000 people were killed; thousands are still missing; entire neighborhoods were demolished.
During a Security Council briefing on the current humanitarian and political situation in Syria, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Martin Griffiths noted that the February 6 earthquake in Syria has exacerbated the severe deprivation from 12 years of brutal conflict, leaving some 5.3 million Syrians in need of basic shelter and non-food assistance. On February 14, the UN issued a flash appeal for $397 million for the people of Syria, to cover a period of three months.
At the briefing, U.S. Alternate Representative for Special Political Affairs Robert Wood noted that so far the United States has announced $185 million in humanitarian aid for the people of Turkiye and Syria. He welcomed news that UN humanitarian aid continues to move through the al-Rai, Bab al-Salam, and Bab al-Hawa crossings, and applauded efforts by Syrian civil society groups and NGOs to provide critical services across all of Syria, especially in the northwest.
“However,” noted Ambassador Wood, “the humanitarian crisis in earthquake-affected areas did not begin three weeks ago: The need for more UN aid and access, particularly in northwest Syria, has been painfully clear for years.”
Ambassador Wood emphasized that Security Council members must ensure that humanitarian assistance reaches those in need. He noted “troubling reports” of diversion of lifesaving aid by the Assad regime and other actors.
Ambassador Wood rejected suggestions that U.S. sanctions on Syria are hindering delivery of humanitarian assistance. “U.S. sanctions on Syria target those individuals and entities that have brutalized the people of Syria for over a decade. … [They] do not target those in need of humanitarian assistance.”
While the Security Council is rightly seized with the humanitarian situation in Syria, Ambassador Wood said the Security Council “can and should be doing more to support the political process.
“The Constitutional Committee remains stalled because of Russia’s arbitrary demands. Let us all recommit to a Syrian-led, Syrian-owned political process, under UN auspices,” he declared. “We call on the regime to at long last step up and genuinely participate in a political process that helps all Syrians.”
