UN, partners call for support for Syrians stranded along border with Jordan

The United Nations and its partners continue to call for the immediate provision of life-saving assistance to more than 85,000 Syrians estimated to be stranded along the Syrian and Jordanian border area in makeshift tented settlements,a UN spokesman told reporters here Friday.

The proposed humanitarian assistance included water, food and basic health care, UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said at a daily news briefing here.

As of July 1, the northern border with Syria remained sealed following the June 21 terrorist attack on a border command post in northeast Jordan that killed seven soldiers and injured over a dozen.

"The provision of water through a partner of the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) is the only assistance that has been provided since the attack, but due to disruptions within the community and insecurity, water has not been delivered consistently enough to keep pace with needs," Dujarric said.

"In the extreme heat, delivery of life-saving water, food and basic medical care is absolutely critical," he said.

The United Nations and its partners are calling for immediate facilitation to provide life-saving assistance to 62,000 people besieged in the Syrian towns of Zabadani, Foah, Madaya and Kefraya, most of whom are women and children.

While the government of Syria has approved the delivery, differences between the parties to the so-called "four towns agreement" continue to bar our teams from delivering assistance, the spokesman added. Enditem