UN Security Council Fails to Authorize UN Aid Access into Northwest Syria, Risking the Lives of Hundreds
FAIRFIELD, Conn. (July 11, 2023)— At a time when the needs of children across Syria have never been greater, the UN Security Council today failed to agree to extend the UN’s authorization for the border crossing at Bab al-Hawa, which lapsed on July 10 – the vital access point for UN aid to get into Northwest Syria, which was struck by devastating earthquakes earlier this year.
While two additional border crossings were agreed upon by the Government of Syria following the earthquake, the UN and aid agencies have warned these alone cannot deliver aid at the scale and speed required.
Save the Children is calling on the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) to reconvene immediately to reauthorize what is currently the key route for lifesaving aid for millions of people.
Kathryn Achilles, Director of Advocacy, Communications, Campaigns and Media for Syria at Save the Children, said:
“Make no mistake, the Council’s failure to reauthorize this crossing risks the lives of hundreds of thousands of children – children who have known nothing but conflict and life in camps. Following February’s deadly earthquakes, what we need now more than ever is more access, not less.
“Put simply, closure of this access point equates to hundreds of thousands of children not knowing where their next meal is coming from while leaving their parents racked with anxiety about what drastic measures they may be forced to take to feed their families. Chronic malnutrition has been rising for years, and child labor and child marriage are widespread. The Bab-al Hawa crossing is essential to not only meet the most immediate needs of food, water and shelter but also to support markets and create jobs and livelihoods; so families are not continually living on the brink.
“Even before the earthquakes, families were struggling to put food on the tables, with the average monthly wage only covering a quarter of family’s food needs. [i] In the Northwest, the lives of millions of children are entirely dependent on aid through the Bab al-Hawa crossing. The UN Security Council must urgently reconvene and reverse this fatal decision.”
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