Highlights
• UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi Visits Syria
• UNHCR Crossing lines throughout Syria
• UNHCR uses Airlifts for Emergency Planning
• Winterization Programme Continues
• Sleeping bags in Aleppo
• CBIs improving Lives in Hassakeh
On 21 January the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi visited Syria and appealed to all parties to the conflict to .allow regular, unimpeded and sustained access for humanitarian organizations to besieged and hard-to-reach areas During his one day visit, he met with the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Deputy Foreign Minister and the Minister of Local Administration where he emphasized UNHCR's commitment to delivering aid to the internally displaced people throughout Syria and supporting refugees as well as thanking the Government of Syria for their assistance. He also pledged cooperation to increase livelihood programmes, on-line education and vocational training.
In addition, the High Commissioner met Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in the Um Attiah Al Ansaria Shelter in Damascus, a former school now hosting 73 families, half who are children. After listening to them Mr. Grandi said:“In these hard times, it’s truly inspiring to witness such resilience and courage, but an end to the five-year-old crisis is called for to end the suffering endured by millions of people.“
Also during his visit he handed over seven fully equipped ambulances to UNHCR partner the Syrian Arab Red Crescent (SARC) at its Polyclinic Al Zahira, Damascus in order to enhance its capacity to provide medical emergency response and perform life-saving health services and operations. He also took the opportunity to tour the medial center and attend a psychosocial session for children. Al Zahira polyclinic is the largest of 10 SARC polyclinics providing health services to IDPs and refugees in Damascus, Rural Damascus, Aleppo, Homs and Tartous with the support of UNHCR. In 2015, over 300,000 IDPs benefited from the primary health care services in these clinics.
The High Commissioner also met the UN team, international NGOs and national NGOs in Damascus as well as UNHCR staff from both Damascus and the field offices, who were both excited and encouraged by his visit. “It’s only possible to understand the true scale of the crisis after you meet with people affected by it and listen to them first hand, hear their stories and try to offer them the specific help they need” said Sajjad Malik, UNHCR’s Representative in Syria ”for this reason we welcomed and encouraged the High Commissioner’s decision to come to Syria.”