Syria: UN pulled up for civilian plight with millions having no access to aid

The UN Security Council has been lambasted for failing to implement its resolutions to protect and help civilians in Syria.

A report compiled by a group of 21 aid agencies condemns the insufficient distribution of relief aid to the millions displaced and in need, in the humanitarian crisis in Syria following the four-year-long civil war.

The Syria crisis "remains severely and chronically underfunded" says the report, noting that the international aid community will need £5.6bn ($8.4bn) to respond to the crisis.

At least 76,000 Syrians lost their lives last year. Around 4.8 million reside in remote areas that aid does not reach, up from 2.5 million in 2013.

Funding meanwhile has gone down from 71% in 2013 to 57% in 2014.

"The bitter reality is that the Security Council has failed to implement its resolutions," says Jan Egeland, secretary general of the Norwegian Refugee Council.

"Parties to the conflict have acted with impunity and ignored the Security Council's demands, civilians are not protected and their access to relief has not improved," he added.

The report from agencies including Save the Children, World Vision and Oxfam, notes that over 1,000 civilian deaths have occurred in August (2014), the deadliest [month] since the start of the war.

Civilian plight

Civilians live in appalling conditions with organised murder, rape, and torture of men, women and children continuing as the conflict enters its fifth year.

Robert Lindner, policy adviser for humanitarian campaigns of Oxfam Germany, explains: "In Syria, the war just keeps going. More and more people are getting caught between the fronts and don't have adequate access to humanitarian help."

"And over 11 million people - around half of the country's population - are dependent upon aid."

At the end of the year 2013, three-fourths of the population was living in poverty and 200,000 people are facing starvation as they have inadequate access to food and drinking water, Lindner explained.

Around 7.6 million people have been internally displaced and 3.7 million have fled the country placing a burden on neighbouring Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey.

Adding to the problem was the government of Syria hampering the work of aid agencies, regularly preventing international humanitarian workers from travelling, says the report.

With a possible solution involving the two major players in the UN Security Council, the US and Russia ruled out, the onus falls on regional players, says Ekkehard Forberg, peace building expert and advocacy manager for World Vision.

Iran, Saudi Arabia and Turkey exert a fair amount of influence over the conflict in Syria but by supporting different powers they are pulling the country apart, he says.

Another humanitarian report says 83% of the lights in Syria have gone out since the conflict began in March 2011.