Britain and Turkey stress the need to deliver aid to Syria
The British Foreign Office has expressed its fear of a humanitarian catastrophe in northern Syria, which may affect nearly three million people who depend on United Nations operations by bringing aid across the border.
The British Foreign Office said in a tweet: “The United Kingdom calls on all members of the Security Council to renew Resolution 2533 and expand the entry of aid from Turkey to prevent a humanitarian catastrophe in northern Syria.”
The British Foreign Office added: “Nothing can replace the scale and scope of the UN’s cross-border aid operations, as the lives of more than 3 million Syrians depend on it.”
The head of the Turkish Red Crescent Organization, Kerem Kinik, called on the UN Security Council to extend the delivery of humanitarian aid across the Turkish border to millions of Syrians after the current mandate expired on July 10.
Kinik explained that the closure of humanitarian operations across the border would have “serious consequences and heavy human losses.”
In his turn the head of the Turkish Relief Agency, Bulent Yildirim, demanded that the Bab al-Hawa border crossing between his country and Syria be kept open for UN aid, describing it as a “lifeline” for millions of civilians.
Today, Friday, the UN Security Council is holding a special session to vote on a draft resolution on the mechanism of cross-border humanitarian aid to Syria, where the council’s decision requires the approval of at least 9 of its members.
