With Syrians having suffered for "far too long," OCHA urges regional de-escalation at Security Council

Briefing to the Security Council on the humanitarian situation in Syria by Edem Wosornu, Director of Operations and Advocacy for OCHA, on behalf of Joyce Msuya, Acting Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator

New York, 23 October 2024

As delivered

Thank you, Madam President.

Madam President, Members of the Security Council,

Today, I would like to highlight three key issues: first, the growing impact of hostilities in the region on Syria, including the influx of arrivals from Lebanon, as Special Envoy Pedersen has just highlighted; second, that this is adding to an immense and ongoing crisis in Syria; and third, the critical need to ensure sufficient support for both emergency response and early recovery.

Madam President,

For months, we have expressed concern about the dangers posed by the escalating conflict in the Middle East and its impact on the already dire humanitarian situation in Syria.

We are now seeing these dangers unfold.

Since 23 September, more than 425,000 people have fled Lebanon into Syria. An estimated 72 per cent are Syrians, of whom almost 60 per cent are children.

Like the Special Envoy has said, we also welcome that the Government of Syria has kept its borders open for people arriving and has eased some immigration procedures.

These include the temporary lifting of the requirement for Syrian nationals to exchange US$100 into local currency upon arrival until the end of October; this includes accepting alternative forms of identification in lieu of passports for all nationalities; and allowing safe passage through the country, including to non-Government-controlled areas.

We also note the Government’s establishment of hosting centres for Lebanese refugees in 10 governorates; instruction to offer discounted hotel rooms; and granting them access to education and health services through national institutions.

As UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi noted during his recent visit to Syria, Syrians are returning to their country under the extreme duress of hostilities in Lebanon.

It remains imperative that their safety, security and fundamental rights in Syria are ensured, and they must have the freedom to reach their preferred destinations. It is equally vital that the humanitarian organizations have unhindered access to those arriving and to all people in need.

The United Nations is supporting the work of the Syrian Arab Red Crescent and others to provide immediate basic assistance to new arrivals, including water, food, blankets, health assistance and legal support.

The response is now shifting to providing assistance to people in the areas where they have settled, and to support host families and communities, many of whom are themselves already stretched to breaking point.

More than 40,000 people have arrived in north-east Syria. The majority are being hosted in local communities, while others have requested assistance at existing camps. Our humanitarian partners are assessing the availability of contingency stocks to support them.

Similar steps are being taken in north-west Syria, where around 4,000 people have arrived. Many of them report facing challenging journeys, including difficulties at checkpoints and crossing points inside Syria. 

Madam President, Distinguished Members of the Council,

The increased need for assistance has put pressure on already stretched humanitarian budgets and budgets across the humanitarian system.

In order to scale up the UNHCR-led response, the Acting Emergency Relief Coordinator has allocated $8 million from the UN Central Emergency Response Fund, including for shelter, food, protection, and cash assistance for people at the border crossings and in destinations across the country. Today, I can announce that an additional $4 million from the United Nations Central Emergency Response Fund will be provided in light of the growing number of arrivals.  The UN’s Syria Humanitarian Fund is also preparing a complementary reserve allocation.

However, this will only be enough to meet immediate needs. The United Nations has launched an inter-agency appeal for an additional $324 million to support up to 480,000 people over the next six months. This is in addition to the ongoing activities in relevant locations under the Humanitarian Response Plan, which is seeking some $4.1 billion and which has received some $1.1 billion to date. I thank donors for their generosity in funding the humanitarian response in Syria and urge further support for the critical activities under these plans.

Madam President,

As the Special Envoy has stated, hostilities have also affected the country more directly.

A number of air strikes have hit locations along the Syria-Lebanon border, including attacks in the “no man’s land” near the main border crossing on 4 and as recently as yesterday, 22 October.

The attacks have rendered the road impassable for vehicles, forcing people to cross the border on foot with whatever they could carry, around the craters and through the rubble.

Others have had to make longer and more treacherous journeys via alternate crossings.

Damage to this main road has caused significant delays to the transport of humanitarian assistance to people who need it the most, and fast.

And it has severed a principal commercial route for the import of key commodities through Lebanon, putting further pressure on already high prices for food and other goods.

As hostilities in Lebanon persist, the risk of further disruptions will only grow.

Air strikes have also hit other locations across Syria. These include three strikes this month in the densely populated Mazzeh neighbourhood of Damascus. These attacks have claimed the lives of at least nine civilians, including children.

The neighbourhood also hosts many of the United Nations’ offices in Damascus and the embassies of a number of countries. One of the air strikes landed just 100 metres from one of the United Nations buildings.

Madam President,

As you know, these developments are happening against the backdrop of one of the largest humanitarian crises in the world: one in which more than 16.7 million people are in need and more than 7 million are internally displaced. Women and girls continue to bear a disproportionate brunt and burden, including heightened risks of gender-based violence.

And the war that has created this crisis continues to add to these needs.

Since mid-October, both Idleb and western Aleppo have witnessed an increase in hostilities, including air strikes and continued shelling.

Damage to a power station resulted in electricity outages for two water stations serving 30,000 people.

And air strikes on 14 October also struck just kilometres from a tent settlement where a United Nations team was carrying out a food distribution by the World Food Programme.

Last week, 12 civilians were killed – including three children under the age of 10 – and 40 injured in Idleb and western Aleppo over a three-day period. Close to 2,000 families have been displaced.

All of this, plus the new emergency linked to hostilities in Lebanon, continues to drive huge demand for humanitarian assistance – assistance that is perpetually under-resourced and overstretched.

More than three quarters of the way through the year, the humanitarian appeal for Syria, as I mentioned earlier, is barely one quarter funded – again $1.1 billion [received] of the $4.1 billion [required].

Madam President,

The new influx of displaced people – against the backdrop of the long-term crisis in Syria – only underscores the importance of identifying sustainable solutions for people who have been dependent on humanitarian assistance for years.

To this end, the United Nations and its partners have finalized an Early Recovery Strategy for the period 2024 to 2028 which will be launched in the coming weeks.

The Strategy aims to build support for targeted, area-based and medium-term humanitarian programming, as a complement to the shorter-term interventions under the Humanitarian Response Plan.

It focuses on four priority areas: ensuring access to health and nutrition services; enhancing access to quality education; improving management of water resources and the availability of water, sanitation and hygiene facilities; and expanding sustainable livelihoods.

These will be accompanied by efforts to expand access to reliable and affordable electricity, which is fundamental for a range of services and often in short supply across Syria.

I want to make clear that the expansion of early recovery projects will be an incremental process and is not an immediate replacement for emergency humanitarian services under the Humanitarian Response Plan.

Indeed, the approaches are mutually supportive and are aimed at providing people with comprehensive solutions to this crisis. It is therefore vital that donors provide adequate resources both for the humanitarian appeal and for early recovery under the new Strategy. 

Madam President,

Unless the escalation in hostilities across the region is restrained, the recent impacts and destabilization we have seen in Syria could be just the start of much worse to come.

Syrians have been suffering for far too long. Alongside de-escalation in the region, efforts for peace and stability in Syria are as urgent now as they have ever been.

We urge the parties to conflict to commit fully to making progress in the process being facilitated by Special Envoy Pedersen.

Let me end by calling on them to de-escalate, respect international humanitarian law, protect civilians and do their utmost to ensure humanitarian assistance can reach all those in need, wherever they are in Syria.

I thank you.