Syria: UN, Damascus agree on aid deliveries to rebel areas

The United Nations has reached an agreement with Damascus to resume aid deliveries to northwestern Syria through the Bab al-Hawa crossing.

Syria's northwest is held by rebel groups backed by Turkey. Millions of people living there depend on UN aid.

The Bab al-Hawa crossing connects the northwestern Idlib region with Turkey's southern Hatay province.

What is the deal between the UN and Damascus?

Aid deliveries from Turkey via the Bab al-Hawa crossing stopped in July, after Western countries and Russia failed to agree on extending a UN Security Council mandate.

Syria gave unilateral approval for the resumption of deliveries, but on terms the UN rejected.

Damascus had demanded the UN not engage with what it calls "terrorist organizations" in northwestern Syria, with the terms stipulating that only the Syrian Arab Red Crescent (SARC) and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) could carry out deliveries.

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres welcomed an "understanding" with Damascus on using the crossing for six months, his deputy spokesman Farhan Haq said.

The statement said the deal followed talks between UN humanitarian affairs chief Martin Griffiths and the Syrian government for the UN to keep providing assistance "at the necessary scale and in a principled manner that allows engagement with all parties ... and that safeguards the UN's operational independence."

"The consent reaffirmed by Syria in recent days provides a basis for the UN and its partners to lawfully conduct cross-border humanitarian operations through Bab al-Hawa," the UN statement said.

Aid NGO raises concerns over deal

The International Rescue Committee (IRC) NGO voiced concern at the lack of a UN Security Council mandate.

"We are concerned that the removal of certainty and security provided by Security Council authorization will impact the ability of humanitarian organizations, and particularly Syrian NGOs, to operate effectively," the IRC said.

It argued that the mandate provided a "guarantee" for residents that aid deliveries were "supported and protected by the international community," it said.

It added that the deal's expiry in February "at the height of next year's winter season, raises significant concerns about the ability of the response to scale up to meet needs given the lack of predictability."

sdi/wmr (Reuters, AFP)