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CAFOD: International community must increase pressure to end Syria crisis


Four years on from the outbreak of war, the Syrian crisis continues to deepen, and the human suffering is greater than ever before. CAFOD partner, Bishop Antoine Audo, Director of Caritas Syria, is based in Aleppo. He said: "This war has destroyed whole neighbourhoods, not forgetting the booming industries that were in Syria and the farming. Half of Syrians are either homeless or living as refugees in neighbouring countries. Eighty per cent of the workforce in Aleppo have no work. The rich have left, the middle class have become poor and the poor have become destitute."

The UN has described the conflict in Syria as contributing to the world's worst refugee crisis since the Second World War. More than 190,000 people have died since the start of the conflict in March 2011, and today more than 12.2 million Syrians inside Syria are in urgent need of humanitarian aid, with a further 7.6 million people homeless, and more than 3 million Syrians are living outside of Syria, the majority in neighbouring countries.

CAFOD is able to work through local partners on the ground inside Syria, who are able to channel humanitarian aid to where it is needed regardless of religious or political affiliations. Some of CAFOD's partners are working at great risk to their own safety. With CAFOD funding they have been able to reach communities with vital food, shelter, clean water and sanitation. Outside of Syria in neighbouring Lebanon and Jordan the agency continues to bolster the work of partners providing Syrian refugees with shelter, food, health and education services.

CAFOD's Emergency Manager for the Syria Crisis, Alan Thomlinson, said: "The extreme hardship already endured by millions of Syrians will only grow worse as the violence in Syria continues to spiral. The situation is economically, politically and socially unsustainable. It is unconscionable that Syrians should continue to suffer. The international community must do everything in its power to bring an end to the suffering inside of Syria and the region, by ending the conflict."

To mark the fourth anniversary of the conflict CAFOD as part of a global coalition of aid agencies, is stressing the need for urgent international action to find a political solution. CAFOD is calling on UK leaders to:

- Prioritise finding a political and inclusive agreement to bring the conflict to an end

- Prioritise negotiations to call on both sides in the conflict to end indiscriminate attacks against civilians

- Prioritise financing for humanitarian aid response

Bishop Audo concluded: "We are tired and enough really is enough. It's difficult for me to think about the hopes for the future of the next generation of Syrians. "However, we hope to one day build a real sense of citizenship based on the respect of human rights. Syria is a beautiful country with deep roots in history and humanity. It is a place where people of many religions and cultures can live together as a model of human rights and of civilisation. It is a country I love."

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