REACTION: Oxfam response to the UN Security Council’s vote on continuing cross-border aid into Syria

“The UN Security Council’s decision extends a vital lifeline to the four million people in northwest Syria, the majority of them women and girls, who depend on the aid provided through this increasingly fragile agreement for survival.

“However, six months is not enough time. Cholera is spreading across Syria and millions of people, many of whom have been repeatedly displaced, are struggling to survive the harsh winter. Rampant inflation, growing hunger, scarcity of clean water and lack of basic services mean that 15.3 million Syrians across the country are predicted to need humanitarian assistance in 2023 – the highest number of people since the start of this long-running, now largely-forgotten, conflict.

“The successive failure of the UN Security Council to seize upon its responsibility to create a more sustainable means to reduce suffering and improve prospects for generations blighted by this horrific conflict is shocking. To halt the spiral of suffering the Council should ensure that all ways to provide aid are in place beyond July 2023. This would include extending more long-term support for the cross-border mechanism, supporting efforts to significantly expand access for people in Syria’s northwest to unhindered and predictable aid across conflict lines, supporting sustainable access to basic services and funding the UN Humanitarian Response Plan.”

Ends

For more information contact: Oxfam Media Unit / +44 (0)7748 761 999 / media.unit@oxfam.org.uk

Notes to Editors:

• Source for numbers of people in need: Statement by the Humanitarian Coordinator at Security Council Briefing on Syria, 21 December 2022
• Oxfam is currently working in six governorates, and has been helping on average one million people per year for the past three years. Since 2013, Oxfam in Syria has been helping people affected by the conflict by providing clean water, distributing cash and helping people rebuild their lives. Oxfam is also working to support women to have a voice in decision-making within their households and communities.