According to the UN, Syria’s government has decided to open two more border crossings so that relief may reach the nation that was devastated by last week’s terrible earthquakes.
It will have a significant impact. We are now just using one crossing, a UN Secretary General António Guterres spokesman informed the BBC.
Nearly 40,000 people in the two countries were reported to have perished as a result of the earthquakes in neighbouring Turkey.
The lack of assistance for their war-torn country has infuriated many Syrians.
The administration of President Bashar al-Assad has attributed challenges in rescue operations on the effects of Western sanctions placed on the nation.
However, according to international assistance organisations, the main obstacles are the Assad government’s poor management and refusal to engage with all regions of the nation.
The earthquakes on February 6 are believed to have killed more than 5,700 people in Syria.
The number of fatalities in Turkey has already surpassed 31,000.
Aid organisations worry that the number of homeless people in Syria could be far higher than the more than one million who are now homeless in Turkey.
The likelihood of discovering any more survivors is dwindling, therefore rescue crews from both countries are now scaling back their efforts in the large area.
After high-level meetings with President Assad in Damascus on Monday, the UN announced the opening of the two new border crossings at Bab al-Salam and Al Ra’ee on the border with Turkey.
It stated that the initial opening period for the crossings into the rebel-held northwest of Syria would be three months.
Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s World Tonight programme, Mr. Guterres’ spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said, “Very soon we will use the other two crossings.”
“We hope the agreement will be in effect for as long as we need it. The only assumption I want to make is that people will put politics aside regardless of where they stand in this dispute. We will begin using it as soon as feasible.
He made no more mention of the opening dates for the two crossings.
Additionally, Mr. Dujarric defended the wait for Syria’s approval to open the crossings.
“From what we gather, these border crossings have been utilised by other relief organisations that are not connected to the UN. Because of the UN’s structure, we must work within particular bounds.
A public statement on the subject has not been made by President Assad.
In the early days following the earthquakes some supplies, mostly from friendly nations like Russia, Iran, and the United Arab Emirates, reached the government-controlled portions of Syria.
However, the damaged, by rebels, northwestern parts of Syria are still essentially cut off.
This is due to the fact that just one border from Turkey or through the government-controlled portions of Syria allow for the delivery of international humanitarian aid to these regions.
