Donors and diplomats met for a seventh straight year in Brussels this week to raise money for Syria’s ongoing humanitarian crisis. They pledged a total of 5.6 billion euros ($6.1 billion) for “2023 and beyond,” including 4.6 billion euros ($1 billion) for this year. The money will be used to support people both inside Syria and in neighboring countries hosting Syrian refugees. Aid groups have said the amount isn’t enough given growing needs within Syria and for Syrian refugees, many of whom face increasing pressure to return to a country still at war. The UN has so far received 11.6% of the $5.41 billion it says it needs for aid to Syrians in 2023, and that doesn’t include assistance for refugees. Low funding levels have led to cuts in various forms of aid, including food rations in a place where millions are struggling to get by.
From The New Humanitarian, June 16
See our last reports on summary deportation of Syrian refugees, the ongoing war and humnaitarian crisis, and the dilemmas of aid delivery.
Photo: UNICEF via UN News
Syrian refugees face dire human rights situation: UN report
A report (PDF) released by the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) on Feb. 13 documents rights violations and abuses endured by Syrians upon their return to Syria, as well as an “alarming” economic situation. (Jurist)