Syrian Arab Republic: Cross-Border Humanitarian Reach and Activities from Türkiye (March 2023)

CONTEXT

Severe rain, flooding and rainstorms hit north-west Syria in March, damaging more than 3,000 tents and affecting at least 80,000 people including those in reception centers.
Many tents in pre-constructed camps have worn out due to repeated bad weather conditions over the years. For many families, this is the second home that they have lost in two months.

The devastating earthquakes that struck in February have resulted in more than 4,500 casualties, 10,000 injuries and 100,000 displacement movements across north-west Syria. Nearly half of all injured were women and girls. This has added a crisis on top of a crisis for the 4.5 million population – 90 per cent of whom rely on humanitarian assistance to meet their most basic needs.

Against this backdrop, airstrikes and shelling continued to be reported. Since the earthquakes struck, at least seven civilians have been killed and 15 injured, including five children, according to monitoring conducted by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).

The UN and partners have responded to earthquake-driven needs through humanitarian and early recovery interventions. Since the earthquakes struck, and by the end of March, 1,202 trucks carrying UN aid have crossed from Türkiye to north-west Syria using three border crossings. As of 30 March, 45 UN cross-border missions were conducted for project monitoring, assessments, community engagement and operational coordination purposes. Other support have also continued including debris removal, building damage assessments, multi-purpose cash support and distribution of food, emergency shelters and medical supplies.

Cholera cases continued to rise in north-west Syria. To curb the spread of the disease, the first cholera vaccination campaign was launched on 7 March, led by WHO and UNICEF, in earthquake-affected areas with the support of mobile teams. By its last day, on 18 March, the campaign covered 97 per cent of its target of vaccinating 1.7 million people.