UN AID CHIEF DEMANDS FOR SECURE ACCESS TO NEEDY SYRIANS

New York, 13 Shawwal 1436/29 July 2015 (MINA) – UN aid chief Stephen O’Brien, who is visiting Damascus next month, expressed his hope for better humanitarian access to displaced Syrian people following four years of a war that had claimed lives of at least 240 thousand civilians.

The upcoming visit “will provide an opportunity to constructively engage with the government to address challenges of significant access seriously impeding humanitarian operations,” O’Brien told the UN Security Council.

“Carving out space to meet the humanitarian needs of Syria’s people is today’s imperative,” he said, ARA News quoted by Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA) as reporting.

According to the United Nations, 12.2 million Syrians are in need of humanitarian aid.

“We must have a rapid and sustainable access to deliver essential humanitarian items to all people in need in the country, without delay or hindrance,” he said.

“A political solution is more urgent than ever to end this hopeless cycle of brutality and violence.” (T/P001/R07)

Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA)