UN humanitarian chief highlights civilian suffering in Syria

UNITED NATIONS -- UN Undersecretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Mark Lowcock said Tuesday that the last few months have been some of the worst for Syrian civilians as a result of ongoing violence.

In the besieged rebel stronghold of Eastern Ghouta in the outskirts of Damascus, more than 1,700 people have been reportedly killed since Feb 24, the day of adoption of Security Council Resolution 2401, which demands an immediate cease-fire across Syria, Lowcock told the Security Council in a briefing.

Attacks on critical civilian infrastructure like medical facilities continue to be reported. There have been at least 28 reported attacks on health facilities since mid-February and more than 70 verified incidents since the beginning of this year, said Lowcock via video teleconference in Geneva.

In Damascus city, at least 78 people were reportedly killed and 230 others injured by shells fired from Eastern Ghouta in recent weeks. They include reports of at least 35 people killed and scores wounded on March 20 when a market in Jaramana, a southeastern suburb of the city, was struck by a rocket, said Lowcock.

Tens of thousands of civilians have been displaced across the country in recent weeks, he said.

Nearly 52,000 civilians from Eastern Ghouta are currently being hosted in eight collective shelters in rural Damascus. Most of the collective shelters do not have the capacity or infrastructure to accommodate such large numbers of people, he said.