International emergency aid for northwest Syria? Five questions and answers

In northwestern Syria, the earthquake is causing a humanitarian disaster on top of a humanitarian disaster. On top of that, much-needed emergency aid is not reaching the scene. Shaymaa Mostafa, project coordinator for 11.11.11 in the Middle East, emphasizes the importance and urgency of international solidarity for Syrian citizens. 'The clock is ticking. International solidarity can save lives in the coming days and weeks.'

'Northwest Syria has been ravaged by successive crises for years, causing unimaginable suffering and massive destruction. After more than a decade of war, the provinces of Idlib and Aleppo had become a last refuge for many. In northwest Syria alone, 4,1 million people were dependent on humanitarian aid. That is more than 90% of the population. Most of them, around 3 million people, had to leave their homes and were living in extremely precarious conditions.

'Take the lack of fuel, for example: even before the earthquake, more than 92% of families in the region had difficulty obtaining heating materials. Families were forced to rely on olive pulp as heating pellets.'

'And let us not forget that war violence continues to exact a huge toll. Fighting in northwestern Syria alone left 2022 civilians dead in 145, 58 of whom were children, most of whom had never known peace in their lives.'

'Every day, tragedies occurred and the international community largely turned a blind eye. Despite desperate appeals from local and international NGOs such as 11.11.11 there remained a 48% humanitarian funding gap. Coupled with a severe cholera outbreak, that was the situation that northwest Syria found itself in during the winter. And that was all before the earthquake.'

'Survivors are still being pulled from the rubble, but hope is visibly dwindling. The number of casualties currently stands at more than 2.500 dead and 5.000 wounded in at least 56 areas in northwestern Syria. This number is set to rise. The material damage is also immense. With more than 5.100 damaged and 2.000 destroyed buildings, more than 11.000 families are expected to be homeless.'

'Northwest Syria is being forgotten. The White Helmets is the only organization conducting search and rescue operations in northwest Syria. They are currently conducting emergency operations in over 40 locations. They are doing their utmost, but can currently only search for survivors in just 5% of the affected areas. There is an urgent need for fuel, spare parts to repair vehicles and more machinery to support the relief efforts. People are searching for survivors and victims themselves, and some are even using their bare hands to dig and search for their relatives.'

'Local teams are no longer able to cope with this humanitarian disaster: thousands of people are still under the rubble and supplies are struggling to reach the affected areas. Many highways and ports are damaged or inaccessible. Logistics teams are forced to work from their cars or shelters because their offices and homes are paralyzed. However, the international humanitarian response to the situation in Syria is virtually non-existent.'

'And this while temperatures in northern Syria drop to -5 degrees. That weighs on them. The rescue teams on the ground are exhausted, in mourning, and have hardly any electricity or internet connection. Most hospitals were already struggling with a shortage of doctors and medication, or had already been destroyed by the attacks of the Syrian regime.

'Due to Russian and Syrian opposition in the UN, Bab al-Hawa is the only border crossing through which UN aid convoys are allowed to enter northwestern Syria. The first UN convoy only passed through after four crucial days.'

'Other border crossings, such as Bab-al-Salaam and Al-Rai are also operational, but they are not allowed to be used under the UN border crossing system. Non-UN aid convoys could still use these crossings. Many people are also calling on the UN to either extend the Security Council's border crossing mechanism to include these two crossings or to use them anyway.'

'On February 10, a group of international lawyers, including former judges of the International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Court, publicly stated that UN agencies should not necessarily wait for UN Security Council approval to use any border crossings to deliver life-saving aid. Breaking this impasse could save countless lives.'

'But it also remains logistically difficult to use border crossings, as many roads from Gaziantep to the border have been badly affected. So far, the vast majority of rescue operations have been carried out by local NGOs that were already on the ground, such as 11.11.11-partners Basmeh & Zeitooneh and Olive Branch.'

'The international community has numerous response mechanisms to deal with such disasters. We must use them to the maximum. Belgian diplomats in New York should, together with other countries, put pressure on the UN Security Council to make additional border crossings (Bab-al-Salaam and Al-Rai) accessible to international aid.'

'It is positive that the B-FAST emergency response team has been deployed, but more can be done. Earlier this week, the federal government confirmed its contribution of 4 million euros to the United Nations cross-border fund for Syria. That budget was already included in the budget, based on the existing humanitarian needs of the area before the earthquake. According to 11.11.11 fail.'

'The needs have exploded, but Belgium is still marking time. Syrian citizens do not need business as usual, countries like Belgium urgently need to shift up a gear in terms of emergency funding. Our country did grant an additional 1 million to the Disaster Response Emergency Fund (DREF), a fund that supports local Red Cross associations after natural and climate disasters. That money goes to organizations that are active in Turkey and areas that fall under the Assad regime.'

'That is of course also important, but people in northwestern Syria are left out in the cold. International aid in this area is therefore hardly getting started. In the meantime, the clock is ticking for rescue workers on the ground, who have to make do with very limited manpower and resources in a huge area. Every minute there are new victims. International solidarity can save lives in the coming days and weeks.'

'Much remains to be done: countless people need immediate shelter, food, water, heating, adequate clothing and other basic necessities. There is also a great demand for technical teams to assess whether people can return to their damaged homes or need alternative shelter. Financial resources are crucial for this.'

'The need for donations is particularly great: search and rescue missions are currently a priority, as thousands of lives are still at stake. International support is needed more than ever. 11.11.11 listed reliable organizations those who are active in the region and use donations directly in the affected areas.'

"It is also crucial that you join us in raising your concerns, that you make your voice heard. People in northwest Syria desperately need international solidarity. It can save countless lives in the hours, days, weeks and months ahead."