UN Extends Syria Cross-border Aid Without Security Council Vote

Cross-border humanitarian aid to northwest Syria has been extended de facto for six months without a new vote at the United Nations Security Council. <br />The 15-member body had previously issued an authorisation for six months, allowing aid into rebel-held areas through the use of the Bab al-Hawa crossing at the Turkey-Syria border until January 10, 2022. <br />UN chief Antonio Guterres had stressed the impossibility of replacing at this stage the cross-border mechanism for one that crossed front lines from Damascus, which President Bashar al-Assad ally and permanent Security Council member Russia favours as recognition of the Syrian government’s sovereignty over the whole country.