Refugees return to Syria from Lebanon. Syria: UN agencies call for increased aid to refugees, support for political transition Peace and security
The people of Syria, who have endured much suffering and upheaval during more than 14 years of conflict, have a unique opportunity to rebuild their country and build a better future, said Amy Pope, Director-General of the International Organization for Migration (IOM), upon her arrival in Damascus.
During her visit, Pope met with representatives of the interim government, UN agencies and civil society.
Winter Assistance
This morning, Pope announced the resumption of IOM operations in Syria. She also called on the international community to support the expansion of humanitarian efforts and mobilize resources for winter assistance. IOM has requested $30 million over the next four months to support 684,100 people in northwest Syria.
Since the conflict began in 2011, Syria has faced widespread destruction and displacement. More than six million Syrians have fled other countries, and 5.5 million remain internally displaced within Syria. Today, 17 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance, and 90 percent of the country’s population lives below the poverty line.
According to the IOM, about 250,000 Syrians have returned to their homes in the past week, including 100,000 from abroad. Many are returning to destroyed cities.
Transition
At a press conference before leaving Damascus on Wednesday, UN Special Envoy for Syria Geir Pedersen said that despite the early stage of the process, he sees hope for the situation to develop in line with the provisions of UN Security Council Resolution 2254. During his visit, Pedersen met with the leadership of various forces, including Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), as well as with the families of detainees and representatives of civil society.
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Resolution 2254 calls for a new constitution and social contract for all Syrians, as well as free and fair elections after a transitional period. Pedersen acknowledged several significant challenges: ongoing conflict, particularly in the northeast, severe economic hardship, and the need for a credible and inclusive political transition. He reaffirmed the UN’s commitment to assisting Syria, stressing the importance of working closely with the new administration to address these issues.
Key Principles
Meanwhile, following its meeting on Tuesday, the Security Council also called for an inclusive political process, led and owned by the Syrians, based on the key principles of resolution 2254 (2015) and facilitated by the UN.
In their statement, the Council members reaffirmed their strong commitment to the sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity of Syria and called on all States to respect these principles. They also stressed the importance of countering terrorism, and recalled the obligations of all parties under relevant Security Council resolutions in the field of countering terrorism, in particular ISIS (Daesh). The Security Council called on countries in the region to avoid actions that could lead to escalation, and in particular on Syria and Israel not to jeopardize the safety of UN peacekeepers in the Golan Heights.