DOHA: Qatar has given $1.5bn in aid to support displaced Syrians since the beginning of the conflict in 2011 and is committed to continuing ts support, the country’s Permanent Representative to the UN Office in Geneva Ambassador Faisal bin Abdullah Al Henzab said yesterday.
Speaking in a high level meeting in Geneva to discuss humanitarian conditions in Syria, Al Henzab said Syrians are seeking refuge in Europe in large numbers because they feel abandoned by the international community and have lost hope about any improvement in their situation in the near future.
The Qatari government, under the directives of Emir H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani has strived to ease the difficult humanitarian conditions that Syrian people are struggling with, said Al Henzab.
The Qatari aid included food, clothes, medicine and shelter among other things. Qatar has also provided assistance to Syrian refugees stranded on European borders.
In a international donors meeting in Kuwait in April this year, Qatar announced establishment of a special fund for education of displaced Syrian children.
Most recently, the Emir sponsored 100 displaced Syrian children to study at the prestigious Paris Sorbonne University. Syrian expatriates in Qatar are enjoying complete care and the country is keen to provide with all the services and facilities, he added.
Al Henzab said the main reason why thousands of Syrian people are putting their lives at risk in the sea and on the roads and exposing themselves to mistreatment is that there is no indication that their suffering is going to end. In addition to there is a shortage of humanitarian aid, said Al Henzab.
Millions of Syrians are living in besieged areas which is difficult to reach due to deteriorating security situation and big hindrance to send humanitarian aid. They are forced to choose between life and death rather than changing their lifestyle, said Al Henzab.
He said it is important to intensify efforts to provide humanitarian aid. However, the humanitarian work should go hand in hand with efforts to find a political solution to the crisis. More than ever in the past, the UN Security Council has been asked to shoulder its moral, humanitarian and legal responsibility to end the bloodshed in Syria, he added and urged donors to fulfill their pledges as the situation in Syria is expected to deteriorate with the onset of winter.
Meanwhile, the Qatar Charity said it has completed about 70 percent of its QR44m project to build a model city near the Syrian-Turkish border for displaced Syrians. Dubbed Al Rayyan, the project is expected to be completed in November. It comprises 1,000 residential units which can accommodate a total of 7,000 people. It is being implemented in collaboration with two Turkish humanitarian organisations.
The Peninsula
