United Nations: 70% of Syrian residents in need of humanitarian aid
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UN officials warn that Syria faces one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises, with over 70% of the population in need of aid, millions displaced, and severe food insecurity threatening millions more.
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Syrian children play with old tires in the war-damaged town of Douma, Syria, Tuesday, September 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Omar Sanadiki)
UN Under-Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’ envoy, Tom Fletcher, said in a briefing to the Security Council on Syria on Thursday, September 18, that more than 70% of the population is in need of humanitarian assistance.
Fletcher also highlighted that there are roughly seven million internally displaced persons inside Syria, and over four million refugees in neighboring countries.
The UN Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator in Syria, Adam Abdelmoula, similarly stated on September 9 that around 16.5 million people in Syria are in need of humanitarian aid. He added that there are also 2.5 million returnees, whether internally displaced persons or refugees from abroad, many of whom have lost their homes.
Abdelmoula further noted that around 24% of housing in Syria has been damaged or destroyed over the past years. Despite the dire situation, the funding received by the United Nations to provide support in this regard remains extremely scarce.
In August, the United Nations' World Food Programme, warned that roughly three million Syrians could face severe hunger, while over half of the population of 25.6 million is currently food insecure.
Another report in June by a UN humanitarian body, the Food and Agriculture Organization, estimated a wheat shortfall of 2.73 million metric tons this year, only enough to feed 16 million people for a year.
Wheat is necessary as it underpins Syria’s subsidised bread programme, considered a lifeline for ordinary families. The new government has been slow to secure large-scale grain imports, leaving the country vulnerable to worsening shortages.
Read more: Stability unachievable under Israeli aggression: Syria FM
Israeli forces terrorizing Syrian residents in the south
Alongside the humanitarian issues raised, Syrians residing in the south have faced a series of Israeli operations in the region, many of which include Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) kidnapping civilians.
Human Rights Watch (HRW) also stated on September 17 that IOF forces are committing war crimes in southern Syria, including the forced displacement of residents and the demolition of homes in the occupied Golan Heights buffer zone.
"Israeli forces occupying parts of southern Syria since December 2024 have carried out a range of abuses against residents, including forced displacement," HRW said.
