Russia has vetoed the solution proposed by the UN which called for the corridor to continue for another year

Bab al Hawa corridor to deliver aid to Syria for six months only

photo_camera AFP/ OMAR HAJ KADOUR - A convoy carrying humanitarian aid crosses into Syria from Turkey through the Bab al-Hawa border crossing on 8 July 2022

The Bab al Hawa humanitarian corridor will continue to supply humanitarian aid to Syria, but only for a period of six months. The decision was taken in the UN Security Council after Russia vetoed the extension of the corridor for another year to finally extend its operation for a period of six months, the time period that Russia had advocated from the beginning.

Last Friday, in a new Security Council vote, Russia vetoed the solution proposed by the UN and international organisations that advocated extending the corridor for a year. The United States, France and the United Kingdom reportedly voted against the resolution, while China and Russia voted in favour. The other ten Council members abstained. In view of this situation, Ireland and Norway - the countries in charge of leading the negotiations - are said to have drafted a text that would give in to Russia's only alternative of extending it for six months.

corredor-ba al hawa-siria

This new text proposes approving the corridor's operation until January 2023 and would be subject to the adoption of a new resolution. The document also calls for briefings to document the conditions of the civilian population, as well as a special report on humanitarian needs in the region to be submitted to UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres by 10 December.

Russia, an ally of the Al-Assad government, has already expressed its views on the new document. In this regard, Russia's deputy ambassador to the UN, Dmitry Polyanski, indicated that Moscow would adopt this resolution with "a minimal modification". The Kremlin and the Al-Asad government argue that the aid arriving through the Bab al Hawa crossing would also benefit terrorist groups, mainly the al Nusra Front, a terrorist organisation created in 2012 during the civil conflict and linked to Al Qaeda.

niños-refugiados-idlib

Moscow has used its veto on Western-backed measures in the Syrian conflict a total of 17 times since the start of the war in 2011. This year, Russia's invasion of Ukraine has further complicated the negotiation process in Syria. This is according to UN expert Richard Gowan, who points out that the current situation "complicates negotiations on Syria" and the reconstruction of the country itself.

For Russia, the best option is to stop delivering this aid from outside Idlib and instead channel all humanitarian aid from inside Syria. If this were to happen, this aid would necessarily have to go through al-Assad and his government, so it would be very likely that the citizens, many of them refugees, of the Idlib region would not be able to count on this assistance. 

sesion-consejo-seguridad-onu

The importance of the Bab al Hawa corridor is that it is itself a humanitarian delivery mechanism linking the Turkish border with north-western Syria. At present this area remains under the control of the rebels, the opposition group to Bashar al-Assad that rose up against his government at the beginning of the Arab Spring.

In the wake of opposition resistance, Syria has been the scene of one of the most inhumane conflicts of our century. Civilian casualties number in the hundreds of thousands and those who have survived are trying to rebuild a life in a country that continues to suffer the ravages of a conflict that has not even ended. Internal displacement has forced millions of families to settle in those areas of Syria not yet under al-Assad's control. Idlib is one of these areas, and it is also where both the Kurdish Arab resistance and various terrorist groups are still trying to spread terror.

al asad-putin-cartel

In the midst of this situation, four million Syrians are trying to survive with the help of corridors such as the Bab al Hawa. For them, the existence of this corridor is the only way through which vital UN supplies can reach them, making their survival almost directly dependent on its functioning.

More in Society