In the space of five years, the Syrian crisis has singlehandedly undermined the credibility of all international bodies claiming to protect nations while totally ignoring all supposedly accepted humanitarian principles and the conventions derived from them.
Humanitarian Syrian Red Crescent convoy escorted by Syrian rebels as far as Foua and Kefraya besieged areas, Idlib – February 2016 (Photo: Reuters/Ammar Abdullah).
無國界醫生香港
In the same period, values of fraternity and solidarity advocated by some European countries were also shrugged off. At a time when it was most urgent to live up these values and to admit on its soil victims of Syrian war which is one of the most serious humanitarian crises since Second World War, Europe preferred to turn its backs to Syrians by opting for a push back policy.
At the time when it has become most critical to rethink the foundations of the UN Safety Council (UNSC) as well as the obligations of all actors engaged in the Syrian conflict, it is sadly no surprise that the World Humanitarian Summit in May 2016 completely failed to address any of the root causes of these collective failures. As long as geopolitical interests remain the primary consideration of warring parties and of states who endorse their war acts, the imperative need to protect the victims of war and those who provide aid to them will be neglected.
Without the required changes in priorities, it remains more than likely that future attempts to help the peace process in Syria will keep on failing, like the one initiated for the past five years. And this in spite of the millions of people killed, wounded or forced to flee their home or their country. This partly explains why some organizations such as Doctors Without Borders (MSF) preferred not attend to the summit. Those discussions held in Istanbul were indeed more focused on resilience and development debates rather than humanitarian responses in emergency situations.
無國界醫生香港
In the face of extreme difficulties met by humanitarian organizations attempting to act independently in Syria, the fundamental principles of humanitarian action were snuffed out by actors engaged in the conflict who regularly use aid as a weapon of war. As is the case in most places affected by natural or man-made disasters, organisations wanting to provide humanitarian assistance in the country, including in opposition-held areas, have to be previously authorized by the local authorities; in this case, the Government of Syria (GoS). However, the official, authorized, humanitarian agencies have no choice regarding the recipients of their aid, nor of their actions which are piloted by the regime of Bashar Al-Assad. For those who decided to legally operate in Syria, humanitarian agencies based in Damascus must generally accept a forced collaboration with the Syrian Red Crescent (SARC) which is a governmental organization. As for “unofficial” humanitarian organizations who try to provide assistance to populations considered as terrorists by the Syrian government, their only choice is to deal with activist networks and opposition groups if they want to reach the victims most seriously affected by this conflict.
Whether for reasons of continuing obstruction of aid in Syria or because of the persisting climate of high insecurity in the country, the problem of access to the victims of the conflict – mostly those who are trapped in besieged zones – represents de facto the main challenge of this crisis; a challenge which cannot be overcome without humanitarian logistics adapted to these types of constraint.
無國界醫生捐款
This article puts forwards an analysis of Emergency Humanitarian Logistics (EHL) set up in Syria to circumvent military siege blocking lines, in spite of the huge risks incurred daily by logistics actors. Through underground supply networks, several tons of drugs, food and other essential products are shipped every day to alleviate the suffering of populations considered by some as ‘terrorists’ or by others as ‘hard to reach’.
Before considering the conditions required for the organization of this very atypical type of logistics setup (as well as the issues and limits inherent to these types of clandestine operation), the author first returns to the issue of the idiosyncrasies of the Syrian context as well as the various methods adopted to assist the victims of this dreadful war.
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