The United Nations needs to continue to keep sending necessary earthquake aid to Syrians via two crossings into the opposition-held northwest even if the authorization expires, Amnesty International said Friday.
On Feb. 6, a devastating earthquake hit Türkiye and Syria, killing more than 55,000 people across both countries.
The U.N. chief said on Feb. 13 that Syrian President Bashar Assad had agreed to open the Bab al-Salama and al-Rai crossings from Türkiye to allow aid to enter for an initial period of three months.
Damascus has yet to announce an extension of the authorization.
The U.N. "must continue to deliver aid" through those two crossings after May 13 "regardless of whether the government renews" its consent, Amnesty said in a statement.
Before the disaster, almost all desperately needed humanitarian aid for the more than 4 million people living in opposition-controlled areas of Syria was being delivered from Türkiye through one conduit – the Bab al-Hawa crossing.
The number of U.N.-approved crossings into Syria had shrunk from four in 2014, after years of pressure from Assad allies China and Russia at the U.N. Security Council.
"The lives of more than 4 million people are at stake and international law is clear that their rights must be paramount," Amnesty's Sherine Tadros said in the statement.
"The U.N. should take a clear stand against the cruel political machinations that have hampered its humanitarian operations in northern Syria for several years," Tadros added.
Eri Kaneko, the spokesperson for the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, said discussions with the Syrian government had been "constructive."
"We have requested an extension of the special measures... to continue facilitating the humanitarian response to all affected areas," she told Agence France-Presse (AFP).
The U.N. estimated earlier this week that Syria needs almost $15 billion to recover from the quake, and put the total cost of damage and losses at almost $9 billion.
