World Vision calls for Security Council to immediately reconvene as deadline to renew cross border mechanism expires

• There is no alternative to cross-border mechanisms which provide lifeline to millions of Syrians.
• Members of the Security Council are effectively putting politics above the lives of Syrians.
• World Vision expresses deep concern and strong disappointment at today’s outcome-

Friday, 10 July 2020: Today the deadline to renew Resolution 2504 has expired and the UN Security Council has allowed the Syria cross-border mechanism, a lifeline to millions, to lapse. Members of the Security Council are effectively putting politics above the lives of Syrians. World Vision expresses deep concern and strong disappointment at today’s outcome, and the impact this will have on children's lives. We urge Council members to reconvene immediately, find consensus, and ensure UN cross-border assistance can be re-authorised once again. In northwest Syria, over 2.8 million children and their families rely exclusively on cross-border delivery of life-saving assistance – the most basic health services, access to clean drinking water and food assistance to survive.

“The lapse of the cross-border mechanism is devastating for Syrians in the northwest. We have already seen the impact of de-authorisation by the Council in the northeast. Children's lives are at risk, and now we face an even greater challenge to meet escalating needs,” said Johan Mooij, Syria Response Director for World Vision International. There is no alternative to cross-border operations for Syrians in the northwest, caught in the middle of over nine years of conflict, and now facing an outbreak of COVID-19, with the first case confirmed positive in Idleb this week. Never has the need for humanitarian agencies to respond been so great, and since 2014, never has our ability to do so been so greatly at risk.  

We urge the UN Security Council members to urgently reconvene to adopt a resolution that authorises UN cross-border operations and allows unfettered humanitarian access to all Syrians. “The UN Security Council has today failed the people of Syria, but it is not too late. Council members must take urgent action, get back to the table, and find a solution that prioritises the lives of the Syrian people,” added Mooij.

For media enquiries, please contact:

Elias Abu Ata, Syria Response Communications Manager, World Vision International

elias_abuata@wvi.org | +962 775 446 556

Lyndsay Hockin, UN Representative for Humanitarian Affairs & Senior Policy Advisor, World Vision International

lyndsay_hockin@wvi.org | +1 646 460 5237