UN seeks $4B for aid in Syria as civilians face growing humanitarian crisis

By BASSEM MROUE and JAMEY KEATEN
Associated Press

BEIRUT (AP) — A U.N. humanitarian official is appealing for more than $4 billion in life-saving aid for more than 10 million Syrians, saying that the country’s largely forgotten crisis remains “one of the most deadly to civilians in the world.” Adam Abdelmoula, resident coordinator in Syria for the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, made the appeal days after Syria marked the 13th anniversary of the conflict that has killed nearly a half million people and left large parts of the country destroyed. The war has left 90% of Syria’s population below the poverty line. The U.N. World Food Program ended its main assistance program in the country in January.