The United Nations says Syria has set “unacceptable” conditions for providing aid to rebel-held areas

United Nations (AFP) – The United Nations has expressed concern about the “unacceptable conditions” set by Damascus to allow aid to flow through the Bab al-Hawa crossing into opposition-held areas in northwestern Syria, according to a document seen by AFP Friday.

The delivery of humanitarian aid through the crossing has been halted since Monday, when the 2014 UN deal expired.

A letter this week from Syrian authorities authorizing use of the border crossing between Turkey and Syria “contains two unacceptable conditions,” according to a document sent to the UN Security Council by the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

OCHA said it was concerned that the Syrian government had “emphasized that the United Nations should not communicate with entities designated as ‘terrorist'”.

The second condition that the ICRC and the Syrian Arab Red Crescent benefited from was “supervising and facilitating the distribution of humanitarian aid” in northwest Syria.

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The United Nations says more than four million people in northwest Syria need food, water, medicine and other necessities.

Through an arrangement that began in 2014, the United Nations is largely providing relief to northwest Syria via neighboring Turkey through the Bab al-Hawa crossing.

Syria announced Thursday that it will authorize the United Nations to use Bab al-Hawa to deliver vital humanitarian aid to millions of people in rebel-held areas for a period of six months.

The Syrian national flag waves as vehicles move slowly on a bridge during rush hour, in Damascus, Syria, February 28, 2016 (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar, File)

Syria’s ambassador to the United Nations, Bassam al-Sabbagh, told reporters on Thursday that his country had taken a “sovereign decision” about allowing aid to continue.

The announcement came after the expiration of a mechanism that allowed UN convoys to use the crossing to opposition areas without a permit from Damascus on Monday.

A spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, Stephane Dujarric, said on Friday that “there are no crossings in Bab al-Hawa with UN humanitarian assistance,” adding that authorities were reviewing the Syrian permit.

“We’re taking a look at … what exactly was expressed in the letter,” he said.

“These matters need careful study,” he added, reiterating the United Nations’ commitment to providing humanitarian assistance, guided by the humanitarian principles of non-interference and impartiality.

The OCHA document, seen by AFP, also called for the need to “review” and “clarify” parts of Damascus’ message, saying that deliveries “must not violate the neutrality … and the neutrality and independence of UN humanitarian operations.”

Damascus regularly condemns UN aid shipments as a violation of its sovereignty, and Moscow, its main ally, has been abandoning the deal for years.

Russia vetoed a nine-month extension of the agreement on Tuesday, then failed to muster enough votes to adopt a six-month extension.

The 15 Security Council members have been trying for days to find a compromise to extend the cross-border aid package.

The conflict in Syria has killed more than 500,000 people, displaced millions, and destroyed the country’s infrastructure and industry.

“The scale of the needs in Syria requires a comprehensive and unrestricted approach to humanitarian aid,” the ICRC delegation in New York told AFP.

“We stand ready to provide support in ways that are within our capabilities and with the agreement of all parties involved.”

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