UNITED NATIONS, Dec. 13 (Xinhua) -- The UN Security Council on Thursday extended its authorization for another year to allow UN humanitarian operations to use border crossings for delivery into Syria.
In adopting Resolution 2449, the council allowed the UN humanitarian agencies and their implementing partners until Jan. 10, 2020 to use routes across conflict lines and the border crossings, including Bab al-Salam, Bab al-Hawa, Al Yarubiyah and Al-Ramtha, in order to ensure that assistance reaches people in need throughout Syria.
It also renewed a monitoring mechanism, for the same period, to oversee the loading of all humanitarian relief consignments of the UN humanitarian agencies and their implementing partners at the relevant UN facilities, and any subsequent opening of the consignments by the customs authorities of the relevant neighboring countries, for passage into Syria across these border crossings.
The text further demanded all parties allow "safe, unimpeded and sustained" access for UN convoys to all requested areas and populations according to the UN's assessment of need in all parts of Syria.
As in its previous authorization, the council reaffirmed its strong commitment to the sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity of Syria.
According to the UN tally, more than 13 million people in Syria need urgent humanitarian assistance, of whom 6.2 million are internally displaced, and more than 1 million people are still living in hard-to-reach areas.
The UN and their partners reached on average 5.4 million people with humanitarian aid each month in 2018. Life-saving assistance delivered across borders represented a vital part of this, including the delivery of food assistance for on average one million people monthly this year.
