A local official has warned that residents of rebel-held areas of northwest Syria could be deprived of vital humanitarian aid within weeks if the Security Council does not extend the United Nations mandate that expires on Sunday to deliver aid across the border.
Russia used its veto on Friday during a vote by the UN Security Council on a draft resolution to extend the mechanism for the delivery of cross-border humanitarian aid to Syria without Damascus’ consent for one year, and Moscow only accepted the extension of the mandate for six months.
The non-permanent members of the council may propose a new nine-month extension in an effort to find a solution. But no new agreement had been reached until Sunday morning, threatening to deprive millions of this aid.
This mechanism, which allows the transfer of aid through the Bab al-Hawa crossing on the Syrian-Turkish border, is the only one through which aid can be transported to Idlib (northwest) and its environs, without passing through the areas controlled by the Syrian government, expires Sunday.