How Is Assad Exploiting the Earthquake Catastrophe for His Gain?
The suffering of northern Syria is increasing following the devastating earthquake that struck it and southern Turkiye at dawn on Monday.
The suffering of Syrians in the north is exacerbated by the difficulty of reaching relief supplies, and they have paid the price twice: once as a result of the unexpected catastrophic earthquake and another as a result of the political tensions that have trapped them between crossings closed due to destruction and others tightened by the Assad regime and its militias.
Meanwhile, with tragic images, painful details, and a dire humanitarian situation, which requires urgent action to save what can be saved away from any political goals or dimensions, Assad is trying to use the scene for personal calculations, aiming to achieve a package of gains to break his isolation and end the sanctions imposed on him internationally, even if this is at the expense of more lives that are dying with every second delay in rescue and relief.
Difficult Situation
The four million people of the northern Syrian region live mainly on foreign aid after all areas turned into ruins and rubble where there is no place for a source of subsistence in the aftermath of the fierce battles between them and the Assad regime and its allies for more than a decade, which makes this aid the only lifeline for the people there.
The United Nations, through its resolution No. 2156 of 2014, identified four crossings through which aid can enter that area: the Turkish Bab al-Hawa crossing and the Bab al-Salam crossing, and two other crossings on the borders with Jordan and Iraq, but due to Russian objections in particular, this number of crossings was reduced to only two—the two Turkish crossings.
With the use of the Russian veto against decisions to extend the entry of aid through these crossings, the United Nations was forced to adopt a new resolution in the same year (2020) No. 2533, which stipulates that the Bab al-Hawa crossing with Turkiye will be the only crossing for the entry of aid, with the possibility of entering it from the southern side where the areas controlled by the regime, which means Assad’s participation in the aid system and granting him the right to control food, medicine, and drink in the areas inhabited by his opposition opponents and civilians.
The Bab al-Hawa crossing road was severely damaged by the earthquake that destroyed thousands of buildings in the border city of Hatay with Syria, cutting off all facilities, prompting Turkiye to resort to army ships to transport the necessary equipment to remove the rubble covering that area, to announce today the repair and restoration of roads.
Assad’s Pressure
The Assad regime has often called for the transfer of aid to the north through its tools and not through the crossings with Turkiye, but these appeals were rejected and ridiculed, as the regime, which does not hesitate to kill its people, abuse them, besiege them, and bomb them with chemical weapons and forbidden weapons, can therefore be entrusted with providing aid to those it considers its opponents and enemies.
However, in light of this difficult situation, there is no doubt that the regime will try to pressure and blackmail again to achieve its demand, to be a partner in providing aid and to control it and in full view of it.
Aaron Lund, a Swedish writer, said that: “It is clear that there is some kind of opportunity that Assad seeks to exploit from this crisis, and it is either you work with me or through me,” questioning the intention of the regime’s president to deliver aid.
“If [Assad] is smart, he will facilitate the delivery of aid to areas outside his control and will get a chance to look as if he is a responsible person, but the regime is very stubborn,” he told Independent Arabia.
The Syrian regime’s ambassador to the United Nations, Bassam Sabbagh, had asked the Secretary-General of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres, to provide urgent assistance to his country in order to face the worsening situation.
But he stipulated that it be delivered in coordination with Damascus and delivered through Syrian territory, not across the Turkish border.
The same position had been stressed by the regime’s Foreign Minister, Faisal Mekdad, about a week ago when he confirmed his country’s readiness to allow aid to enter all areas, including the north, provided that it does not reach the Syrian opposition, which he described as “terrorist.”
West Rejecting
The US State Department confirms that it will continue to provide aid to Syrians in the north without communicating with the Assad regime, which it considers a key partner in the destruction of the health and service infrastructure of the region’s population.
While US State Department spokesman Ned Price told reporters: “It would be quite ironic, if not even counterproductive, for us to reach out to a government that has brutalized its people over the course of a dozen years now—gassing them, slaughtering them, being responsible for much of the suffering that they have endured.”
The US administration confirmed that it will do its best to provide assistance to the afflicted inside Syria, although it does not recognize the Syrian government, while the regional spokesman for the US State Department, Samuel Warberg, indicated that his country is working to deliver aid directly to the Syrian people.
Assad’s media is trying to hold the sanctions imposed on the regime responsible for not delivering aid and that they are the reason for obstructing relief for the afflicted in the north, but the Foreign Ministry spokesman responded by saying: “There are no obstacles or barriers to the delivery or provision of humanitarian aid to the Syrian people anywhere within Syria’s borders, whether because of US or UN sanctions,” and added that there are no sanctions on any kind of humanitarian aid, whether from the United States or any countries.
Loss of Confidence
The refusal to cooperate with the Assad regime is due to being a key partner in the devastating situation in the north and committing crimes against humanity against his people just because they demanded his departure.
In a report entitled Rescuing Aid in Syria, the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) revealed that the Syrian regime stole 96% of the humanitarian aid provided by the United Nations to the Syrian people, pointing out that this aid has been used over the past years to support the regime’s army and militias.
The 70-page report, based on interviews with UN officials and humanitarian workers in Syria, confirmed with conclusive evidence that the Syrian regime used that aid as a new economic resource.
It also showed that Assad used his power to dominate aid organizations and steal relief convoys to support his army and employ relatives of senior officials within UN bodies, citing the aid provided by Turkiye, for example, in November 2022, despite the arrival of 1.3 million parcels of aid, only 43,500 parcels went for those in need.
Syrian writer Alia Mansour points out that Assad will not allow the passage of international aid provided to the victims of the north, as he considers these areas terrorists and political opponents and enemies he has been fighting for ten years.
“There is certainty that what reaches Assad will not reach the Syrians, especially with the accusations against him of stealing aid and in cooperation with international organizations as well,” wondering about the possibility of “trusting a regime that steals even aid provided to its loyalists, so how if it is provided to areas outside its control?” she wrote.
In a sarcastic tweet on her Twitter account, she wrote: “Did you know that Bashar al-Assad did not declare mourning for the Syrian victims of the earthquake? Did you know that Bashar did not even offer condolences to his supporters for the catastrophe that befell everyone? He came out laughing at them, and here came an opportunity, albeit on the remains of Syrians, for some heads of state to communicate with him. They console him with the death of Syrians, and he does not console Syrians.”
