UN: Assad regime ignored most requests to deliver aid

The Assad regime in 2015 ignored most United Nations requests to deliver humanitarian aid to some of the 4.6 million people in hard-to-reach and besieged areas and only 620,000 received help, the U.N. aid chief said on Wednesday.

Stephen O’Brien told the U.N. Security Council that last year the United Nations made 113 requests to the Assad government for approval of inter-agency aid convoys, but only 10 percent were able to deliver assistance, International Business Times reported.

Another 10 percent were approved in principle by the Assad government, but could not proceed due to a lack of final approval, insecurity or no deal on safe passage, while the U.N. put 3 percent on hold due to insecurity.

O’Brien said the remaining 75 percent of requests went unanswered.

"More and more people are slipping out of our reach every day as the conflict intensifies and battle lines tighten," O’Brien said, Reuters reported.

In total, the U.N. said 13.5 million people in Syria need humanitarian aid, up from 1.3 million from 2014.

"Even with the worsening situation and continued access challenges, humanitarian workers in Syria continue to stay and deliver aid often at great personal risk," O’Brien said.

The U.N. says at least 250,000 people have been killed.