Syrians have suffered years of hardship from regime bombings and assaults. Aid and food have also been another weapon used by Russia and the regime against opposition areas, but NGOs and legal experts argue there are alternatives.
Is it possible to predict future forced displacement? | Fixing Aid - The New Humanitarian puts quality, independent journalism at the service of the millions of people affected by humanitarian crises around the world
Arab countries face high coronavirus vaccine hesitancy
The rollout of coronavirus vaccines in the Middle East and North Africa is already taking place on a massive scale, with the United Arab Emirates leading the way. Nevertheless, many people are in no rush to get the COVID-19 jab. Cathrin Schaer poses the all-important question: why?
Earlier this week Mahmoud, an Iraqi civil servant, had an appointment for a COVID-19 vaccination appointment in Baghdad. The 34-year-old had easily been able to register for an AstraZeneca injection. But he didn t go to the hospital. The Europeans said it wasn t safe, explained Mahmoud, who didn t give his full name because he works for an Iraqi government ministry and staff are not supposed to talk to media.
COVID-19 in the Middle East: Arab countries face high coronavirus vaccine hesitancy en.qantara.de - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from en.qantara.de Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
The Issue
Since the outset of the Syrian crisis, parties to the conflict have instrumentalized aid, restricting, impeding, and diverting humanitarian assistance to their benefit.
These barriers to access have undercut humanitarians’ ability to serve people according to need in a cost-efficient and principled manner.
The lack of access has also meant that Syrian aid workers and organizations have played an outsized role in the humanitarian response, from delivery and programming to monitoring and evaluation.
The victims of attacks on humanitarian workers and civilian infrastructure are overwhelmingly Syrian aid workers and health personnel.
Donors must increase support for local aid organizations and workers in Syria and elsewhere by accelerating the localization of the aid response.