UN ends aid to northwest Syria from Türkiye after Security Council fails to renew approval

The U.N. Security Council on Tuesday failed to renew authorization of the delivery of humanitarian aid to Syria's  northwest from neighboring Türkiye, officially ending a U.N. operation that had been vital to helping a region of 4.1 million people.

The council failed to adopt either of two rival resolutions to authorize further deliveries through the Bab al-Hawa border crossing, where the latest six-month mandate expired on Monday.

Syrian President Bashar Assad opened two additional crossing points from Türkiye at Bab al-Salameh and al-Rai to increase the flow of assistance to victims of the devastating magnitude 7.8 earthquake that ravaged northwestern Syria and southern Türkiye on Feb. 8. He extended their operation for three months in May until Aug. 13, and the United Nations said it will continue to use those crossings to deliver aid.

But U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric told reporters that 85% of U.N. aid to the northwest went by truck through Bab al-Hawa, which is closest to those in need, and "we're not going to be able to match that" amount through the two crossings still available. He added that the U.N. had pre-positioned supplies in the region ahead of the vote, so the cutoff of supplies through Bab al-Hawa should not have an immediate effect.

Nonetheless, Bab al-Hawa remains "the center of gravity" for U.N. cross-border deliveries, and U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres "calls on all Security Council members to redouble their efforts to support the continued delivery of cross-border assistance to millions of people in dire need in north-west Syria for the longest possible period," Dujarric said.

Syria's northwestern province of Idlib is home to about 4.1 million people, many of whom have been forced from their...