WASHINGTON
UN officials on Thursday called for urgent international investment in Syria as more than 1.6 million refugees returned to the country, warning that those who have the intention to return might “not return at all” without adequate services.
“Last year, more than 1.6 million people returned to Syria to reconstruct their country, to come back to the country which they left, often in dramatic circumstances,” Alexander de Croo, administrator of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), told reporters during a virtual briefing during his visit to Syria.
He stressed that Syrians face increased needs in housing, government services, and jobs following a devastating war waged by the ousted regime of Bashar al-Assad that lasted 14 years, from 2011 to 2024.
“And providing those services is really crucial, because if we're not able to provide those services, people who had the intention to return might at some point make the choice to not return at all,” he added.
UN aid chief Tom Fletcher said nearly 16 million people in Syria still need humanitarian assistance, underscoring the scale of the crisis.
“There has been real progress in the last 15 months … progress has defied a lot of pushback and many expectations,” Fletcher said.
“We have to build on that progress now, which means we accelerate the humanitarian work that we're doing, including that vital mine clearance,” he added.
“The world needs a success story right now,” he said, adding Syria could shift “from being an importer of problems … to an exporter of genuine solutions and stability.”
He also stressed “the need to keep Syria out of that wider regional crisis,” stemming from the ongoing US-Israel war on Iran.