Security getting better in Syria, says UN refugee agency

By Peter Kenny

GENEVA (AA) – The UN refugee agency representative in Syria said Friday though there have been some incidents of looting after the fall of the Bashar al-Assad regime, security is getting better in the country.

UNHCR Syria representative Gonzalo Vargas Llosa urged more worldwide support for Syria, a call echoed by the International Federation of the Red Cross at the same UN press conference in Geneva.

“On the issue of the vacuum of law and order, there have been some lootings, including of UN property, over the past week,” said Llosa, speaking from Damascus.

“We have been reassured by the interim authorities that they want to address this gap as soon as possible and that they are trying to do everything possible to restore law and order.”

Llosa said that over the past 14 years of conflict and crisis, more than 13 million Syrians were forced to flee from their homes.

During that period UNHCR and its partners continued to be on the ground in Syria, delivering life-saving assistance wherever the situation allowed.

“Figures are not yet available, but thousands of Syrian refugees have started returning to the country from Lebanon via the official Masnaa border point and other unofficial border crossings,” said the UNHCR official.

“At the same time, other Syrians have fled in the opposite direction into Lebanon.”

- Refugees returning from Türkiye

Llosa said refugees are also returning from Türkiye through the Bab al-Hawa and Bab al-Salam border crossings to north-west Syria.

“Yesterday, we had about 2,000 returns of Syrians from the main border with Lebanon. There were Syrians going back to Idlib, to rural Damascus, to Damascus, to Daraa, to Aleppo, and, to other locations.”

Years of conflict had devastated Syria’s economy and infrastructure, leaving 90% of the population relying on some form of humanitarian aid, said the UN official.

“Regardless of how the situation unfolds, millions of Syrians will need help with shelter, food, and water to get through the coming winter and beyond,” said Llosa.

At the same press conference, Stephan Sakalian, head of delegation for the IFRC in Syria, said that the country remains one of the most serious and complex crises in the world.

“Many people are now on the move following the change of rule, either returning to Syria or within Syria itself,” said Sakalian.

“The full picture of Syria’s future is yet to emerge but we can say without question it is a country that has suffered such trauma for so long, people will need life-saving support right now, and in the coming months.”

Bashar al-Assad, Syria’s leader for nearly 25 years, fled to Russia after anti-regime groups took control of Damascus on Dec. 8, ending the Baath Party regime, which had been in power in Syria since 1963.