Syrian activists accuse UN of 'capitulating' to regime on aid
Nearly 600,000 Syrians live in besieged areas of Syria, most surrounded by government forces.
BEIRUT (AFP) - Dozens of activist groups opposed to Syria’s regime accused the United Nations on Wednesday of "capitulating" to Damascus on aid access to desperate civilians.
The UN humanitarian coordinator for Syria, Yaacoub El Hillo, said however that while aid access was not ideal, the UN continues to "assist Syrians based on need".
The scathing 50-page report by The Syria Campaign (TSC) advocacy group was signed by 55 Syrian organisations opposed to the government, including the White Helmets organisation made up of emergency responders in rebel-held areas.
Based on testimonies from current and former UN staff and other aid workers, the report alleged that the UN in Syria was "in breach of its humanitarian principles and therefore at risk of fuelling the conflict."
"There has been a systematic failure in the UN-led response," said Roger Hearn, who headed the UN’s Palestinian refugee agency in Damascus until December 2011 and contributed to the report.
One anonymous UN official interviewed for the report called the organisation’s work in Syria "a profoundly flawed and one-sided operation."
By the UN’s count, nearly 600,000 Syrians live in besieged areas of Syria, most surrounded by government forces.
Earlier this month, the UN said the government had granted preliminary aid access to 15 of 18 besieged areas, after one was taken off the UN’s list.
Damascus requires aid agencies to go through an authorisation process to deliver aid to these areas -- a request that is frequently rejected.
Since Syria’s conflict erupted in 2011, government officials threatened to revoke the visas of UN staff in Damascus if they delivered aid to areas without regime permission, TSC’s report said.
It accused the UN of "choosing to prioritise cooperation with the Syrian government at all costs," allowing the regime to unduly influence UN aid strategy.
As a result, an overwhelming amount of assistance in Syria goes into government-held territory where permission is provided instead of opposition areas where aid is most needed, the report said.
In April "88 percent of food aid delivered from inside Syria went into government-controlled territory," it said.
Reacting to the report during a visit to Beirut on Wednesday, the UN’s Hillo told journalists the organisation does "not assist Syrians based on location. We assist Syrians based on need."
Taking a convoy full of aid to a besieged town without proper authorisation would be a "suicide mission for humanitarian workers," he said.
The report recommends that UN agencies publicly lay out conditions for continued cooperation with Damascus and sever work with the government if they are not met.
"A UN operation that violates its humanitarian principles becomes party to the conflict and stands accused of doing harm," it said.
Hillo admitted the government had "obstructed" access to some besieged areas: "But because of it, do we condemn the rest to starvation?"
