UN says security concerns hinder large-scale returns in northern Syria

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Security concerns and reports of property looting continue to prevent large-scale returns of displaced families to their homes in northern Syria, the United Nations said on Tuesday.

“Many displaced families have expressed their willingness to go back to their areas of origin, but security concerns and reports of property looting are continuing to hinder large-scale returns,” Stephane Dujarric, spokesperson for the Secretary-General of the UN, told reporters when briefing them on the situation in the besieged town of Kobane. 

He noted that a UN humanitarian convoy of 27 trucks arrived in Kobane on Monday, adding that the aid included food, medical supplies and fuel. 

“While the situation there is gradually improving, including partial restoration of electricity, humanitarian needs remain significant,” he said. 

Kobane has been besieged by the Syrian interim government for around a month after Kurdish forces withdrew from areas connecting Kobane to other areas under Kurdish control. 

Since January, humanitarian partners have delivered more than 300 trucks of aid through 29 convoys, reaching nearly 190,000 people across Aleppo and northeastern Syria, the UN spokesperson said. 

Dujarric told Rudaw during the same press briefing that they are “focusing our efforts from Damascus, our humanitarian efforts from Damascus, given that's where most of our humanitarian goods are” when asked why Kobane continues to face shortages in power and medical supplies despite bordering Turkey. 

“The cross-border operations are continuing. Whether or not there have been cross-border operations going to Kobane, that's something we have to check with the Syria office,” he said. 

Namo Abdulla contributed to this article from New York.

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