UK 'may' ease sanctions for aid delivery to Syria after earthquake
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Holden states that the UK would cooperate with NATO partners, including the US, to ensure aid is brought to Syria.
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A scene from the Idlib province in Syria after the fatal earthquakes (AFP)
UK Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Department for Transport, Richard Holden, spoke on Monday with regards to easing sanctions against Syria in order to deliver humanitarian aid to the country after the fatal earthquakes.
In a statement to Sky News, Holden commented, "I think we are looking at everything we can. When it comes to humanitarian circumstances, we always want to do what can help on the ground," but said that a decision has not been made yet.
Read next: Syria refers to US temporary sanctions waiver as ‘misleading’
He continued to say that the UK would cooperate with NATO partners, including the US, to ensure aid is brought to Syria. As of now, and per the announcement last Friday, the US Treasury announced that it has authorized a 180-day time frame and hold on sanctions for aid to be delivered into Syria.
The aid in question, however, will likely only include areas held by terror groups, which the West calls moderate rebels.
Just today, US Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield called on members of the UN Security Council to "vote immediately" on a resolution to open two additional border crossings connected to rebel-held areas, particularly in Idlib, where the only crossing for humanitarian aid to Syria is operating, and where terror organizations have prevented aid from reaching government-controlled areas.
Likewise, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on Thursday that sanctions should not interfere with relief efforts.
Death toll to double if not more
The death toll from the devastating earthquake in Turkey and Syria will "double or more" from its current level, which has already topped 34,000, according to the UN on Sunday.
At least 870,000 people in Turkey and Syria require hot meals right now and in Syria alone, up to 5.3 million people may have been displaced.
Despite the fact that the US Treasury announced the lifting of some sanctions off Syria in light of the earthquake, no Western country other than Italy has provided Damascus with aid following the devastating 7.8-magnitude earthquake that struck the country and Turkey, showcasing the West's practice of selective humanitarianism.
