Syria agrees to open a UN humanitarian aid corridor to its northwest region
(VOVWORLD) -Damascus has agreed to let aid move overland from Turkey through the Bab al-Hawa crossing in northwest Syria for six months starting Thursday, Ambassador Bassam Sabbagh told reporters.
 Children at a refugee camp in Dana, Idlib province, Syria (Photo: AFP/VNA)
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In a letter to the UN Security Council, Syrian Ambassador to the United Nations Bassam Sabbagh said that the UN and its agencies will be allowed to deliver relief goods through the Bab al-Hawa crossing to northwestern Syria for six months, starting on Thursday. Sabbagh noted that the move must be fully coordinated with the Syrian government.
On Tuesday, the UN Security Council failed to reach an agreement on extending the use of the key humanitarian corridor in Syria. This agreement expired on Monday. Since Syria had not previously supported the operation, it requires authorization from the UN Security Council for the relief operation to continue.
The UN says more than four million people in northwestern Syria are in need of food, water, medicine, and other essentials after being affected for years by conflicts and earthquakes.
Because the February quake killed thousands of Syrians, President Bashar al-Assad agreed to open two more crossings until August.