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Over 100 humanitarian, U.N. agencies call for Syria ceasefire, end of sieges

by Magdalena Mis | @magdalenamis1 | Thomson Reuters Foundation
Thursday, 21 January 2016 12:15 GMT

A Syrian national flag flutters near residents who said they have received permission from the Syrian government to leave the besieged town as they wait with their belongings after an aid convoy entered Madaya, Syria, January 14, 2016. REUTERS/Omar Sanadiki

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Agencies are calling for protection of hospitals, schools and water supplies, and the lifting of all sieges

LONDON, Jan 21 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - More than 100 humanitarian and U.N. agencies called on Thursday for an end to the war in Syria, appealing to governments and people around the world to add their voices to the demand for an end to the 'carnage'.

Oxfam, Save the Children, Caritas International, nearly 30 UNICEF branches and others called for an unconditional ceasefire to allow delivery of aid, freedom of movement for civilians, protection of hospitals, schools and water supplies, and the lifting of all sieges.

The agencies invited people around the world to show support for the appeal by sharing it on social media.

"More than ever before, the world needs to hear a collective public voice calling for an end to this outrage. Because this conflict and its consequences touch us all," the appeal said.

"In the name of our shared humanity ... for the sake of the millions of innocents who have already suffered so much ... and for the millions more whose lives and futures hang in the balance, we call for action now."

The civil war began with a Syrian government crackdown on a pro-democracy movement in early 2011. Islamic State militants have since used the chaos to seize territory in Syria and Iraq, and Thursday's appeal said some 4.6 million Syrians have fled their country.

The United Nations says at least 250,000 people have been killed, 6.6 million people have been displaced in Syria and 13.5 million need humanitarian assistance.

The U.N. Security Council approved a resolution in December endorsing an international road map for a Syrian peace process, but the U.N. special envoy for Syria said on Wednesday that talks due to start on Jan. 25 might be delayed. (Reporting by Magdalena Mis, editing by Tim Pearce. Please credit Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters, that covers humanitarian news, women's rights, corruption and climate change. Visit news.trust.org)

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