How is International Aid in Syria Stolen and Exploited?

A new report prepared by researchers Sasha Ghosh-Siminoff and Nidal Betare published at the Newlines Institute for Strategy and Policy provides a detailed overview of how humanitarian assistance is provided to Syrians in areas controlled by the Assad regime and what happens to the aid once it arrives in the country, and how it is systematically diverted and stolen.

Because the United Nations is one of the largest humanitarian organizations providing assistance in Syria, the researchers have focused on understanding the distribution of its assistance and the mechanism of action of one of its executive partners, the Assad government-run Syrian Arab Red Crescent.

It is estimated that the Syrian Red Crescent receives 60-80% of all assistance reaching government-controlled territory and is systematically involved in diversions of aid to the undeserving.

 

Humanitarian Crisis

Some estimates indicate that about 60 percent of Syria's population was food insecure in 2021. As of December, as revealed by the United Nations, 14 million people in Syria are considered destitute, with a 27 percent increase since December 2020. Of these 14 million in need, 12 million suffer from "severe need."

Since 2011, the international community has injected $40 billion into Syria, including at least $23 billion through the United Nations' multifaceted assistance program.

In 2021, the three largest donors were the United States (45.5 percent), Germany (25.5 percent), and the European Commission (8.2 percent). From 2012 to 2022, World Food Program (WFP) received 27.4 percent of total assistance, and the single largest recipient of UN funding was the Syria Humanitarian Response Plan.

In 2021, the WFP delivered some 541,325 metric tons of food aid to support 6,864,565 of the total beneficiaries.

Humanitarian assistance is delivered to Syria in several ways: either through a special system that passes through neighboring countries, through the UN Security Council-imposed border crossing 2585 at Bab al-Hawa on the border with Turkiye or through direct assistance through agreements with the Syrian government and the United Nations Direct Support Program.

Some of the aid was delivered to areas outside the Syrian government's control through a mechanism known as "cross-line" aid delivery, which depends on the Syrian government allowing the United Nations or other humanitarian groups to transport aid in convoys across military front lines to the opposition-controlled territory.

On July 10, the UN Security Council will vote on whether to renew Syria's cross-border humanitarian assistance mechanism and the only way aid can be delivered and ensure that Syria's corrupt government does not manipulate it to serve its interests.

 

Systemic Theft

The report highlights the ways in which the Syrian government steals and benefits from UN humanitarian assistance and makes recommendations on how to change this dynamic.

More than half of all aid dollars to Syria flow through the United Nations, which is why understanding how programs are implemented, spending money, providing assistance, and ensuring accountability and transparency of programs should be a top priority for donors.

In addition, it is essential to understand whether the UN assistance program in Syria undermines the very sanctions designed to hold the government accountable for its crimes against the Syrian people.

The report concludes that diverting aid is a phenomenon that is rampant throughout government-controlled parts of Syria.

As a significant source of United Nations assistance, the situation of the Syrian Arab Red Crescent, in particular, exposes this systematic manipulation of the aid system.

Assistance to all of Syria cannot be provided only through UN assistance operations based in Damascus, where cross-border assistance imposed by the UN Security Council should continue through Turkiye to Idlib province. Otherwise, it will deprive millions of people of much-needed assistance.

Disruption of cross-border assistance mechanisms in opposition-controlled northwestern Syria could lead to a severe shortage of aid, forcing hundreds of thousands of refugees into Turkiye, which in turn could divert refugee flows to Europe.

Blocking the mechanism for delivering cross-border assistance will create further legal, logistical, and political obstacles for international humanitarian NGOs in Syria.

 

Neutral Aid?

Corruption within the UN assistance program raises questions about the neutrality of the United Nations in conflict situations such as the war in Syria, where state-recognized actors are fighting non-governmental actors.

In this way, the strict commitment of the United Nations to state sovereignty makes assistance programs vulnerable to manipulation and abuse by deceitful government agencies.

Confidence in the neutrality of international assistance will fade if assistance is not guaranteed through a transparent and impartial mechanism, setting a dangerous precedent for other conflict areas.

According to the report, the Syrian Arab Red Crescent plays a crucial role in diverting UN assistance in Syria, but Syrian intelligence and military agencies are an integral part of all stages of the assistance process and the transfer of aid to their own networks.

The Syrian government is using UN assistance to support its soldiers, security forces, allied militias, and political and commercial supporters. The report notes that there is more capacity to create transparency and accountability for cross-border assistance than across conflict lines due to massive aid transfers by Damascus.

Moreover, the lack of oversight and accountability during the provision of assistance inside government-controlled Syria has created a micro-economy based on the conversion and sale of aid for profit at all levels, and the current way in which UN assistance is transferred has created a category of businessmen benefiting from humanitarian assistance in Syria.

While the sanctions imposed on the Syrian government were designed to isolate and punish bad actors from the global economy for atrocities, United Nations assistance gave them an economic lifeline and helped them support the government's war efforts.

"The Syrian government and its allies can divert UN assistance with the support of political allies and businessmen in Lebanon," the report concludes.

 

Policy Recommendations

The report suggests that the U.S. government, the EU Commission, and major EU donor countries should thoroughly review their policies with the United Nations and how aid funds are exploited in Syria.

"This must include full criminal scrutiny by an external party similar to the kind of investigation by the USAID Inspector General's Office into allegations of waste, fraud, misconduct, and corruption," it notes.

"UN counterparts must understand that they are in fact legally and financially responsible implementation partners, accountable to the authorities donor with regard to the money they spend," it added.

The report also says that the U.S. government, along with EU governments, should impose sanctions on board members and decision-making staff of the Syrian Arab Red Crescent, who play a direct role in the comprehensive transfer of humanitarian assistance.

Accordingly, donor countries should demand that the UN mechanism pass more aid through the cross-border mechanism.

"If donor countries are unable to impose independent monitoring of United Nations programs within the State to ensure that there is no systematic transfer of assistance, there must be a mechanism to decide whether the assistance program should be suspended or reduced until appropriate reform is implemented," the report noted.

The report recommends that the U.S. government, the European Union Commission, and major EU donor countries need to inspect UN operations in Lebanon to determine how the Syrian government's network there is diverting aid and aid funds.

"Any Lebanese government agencies involved must be punished, and it must be determined whether Lebanon could remain the United Nations center for Syria's assistance or whether the operations center should be relocated," it said.

If the United Nations is unable or refuses to make substantial changes to its aid program in Syria, then donor governments should reduce funding and use directly funded assistance programs instead, according to the report.