UN Damascus office requests postponing aid delivery to Idlib

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Al Mayadeen Net + Agencies
11 Feb 21:53
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The humanitarian aid convoy from the Syrian Arab Red Crescent was scheduled for tomorrow.

Activists flying an inverted United Nations flag over destroyed buildings in Jindires

The United Nations Office in Damascus asked today, Saturday, the Syrian Arab Red Crescent to postpone the entry of the aid convoy to Idlib, the governorate outside the Syrian state control, which was scheduled for tomorrow.

A convoy carrying Syrian aid is preparing to enter Idlib through the Saraqib border crossing and is currently waiting for UN representatives to hand over the relief aid to Idlib, Syrian informed sources told Al Mayadeen on Thursday.

If international organizations are late, Syria will not hesitate to deliver this aid by itself to help the disaster-stricken people, sources said. "The negotiations were fruitful, and aid is on the way."

Yesterday, the governor of Idlib, Thaer Salhab, confirmed that the Syrian state is ready to let convoys of humanitarian aid into the areas affected by the earthquake in the northwest of Idlib governorate, at any moment, after the other side opens the crossings and allows their entry.

Salhab said coordination is currently underway with the United Nations and international organizations to let in convoys with teams from the Syrian Arab Red Crescent and the International Red Cross.

According to Al Mayadeen sources, the UAE side had been negotiating for the past three days with Idlib armed groups to open the crossings, regarding the entry of aid, but the latter refused.

However, "the armed groups were finally convinced with an aid convoy making it into Idlib through the Syrian Red Crescent and international organizations in Syria," the sources added.

"The armed groups want to garner international support for themselves alone under the pretext that the Syrian government would not allow aid to make it into their areas," the sources concluded.

Syrian state aid is preparing to enter Idlib

Earlier, Al Mayadeen correspondent in Aleppo reported that "the Syrian state is preparing an aid convoy bound for Idlib."

He pointed out that "the aid convoy will enter through the United Nations via the Saraqib crossing," pointing out that "the efforts of armed groups to bring aid into Idlib, through the Turkish border, have failed."

Today, Saturday, the death toll from the earthquake in Syria rose to 4,487.