News releases

DAMASCUS – An unprecedented funding crisis in Syria is forcing the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) to cut assistance to 2.5 million of the 5.5 million people who rely on the agency for their basic food needs. The announcement comes as the European Union gears up to host the seventh Brussels Conference on “Supporting the Future of Syria and the Region” on Wednesday.

KUWAIT - The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) welcomed a recent contribution of US$16 million from the Government of Kuwait to support people in Syria and Türkiye who have been worst affected by the February earthquake in the region.

JORDAN – The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) in Jordan marked the successful completion of a three-month food assistance program for Syrian refugees living in camps, made possible thanks to the King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Centre's (KSrelief’s) donation of US$6 million.

DAMASCUS – An average monthly wage in Syria currently covers about a quarter of a family’s food needs, the UN World Food Programme said today, highlighting an urgent need for increased humanitarian assistance as the country grapples with the devastating impact of recent earthquakes and a 12-year-long conflict.

AMMAN – The Government of Japan contributed US$1.1 million to the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) in Jordan to provide nutrition-sensitive food assistance to more than 27,000 Syrian refugees living in camps and host communities for one month.

HATAY, Türkiye – The Executive Director of the UN World Food Programme (WFP), David Beasley, has concluded a visit to the earthquake affected region of Hatay in southern Türkiye where he witnessed first-hand the incomprehensible devastation caused by the earthquake that struck on 6 February. With some 18 million people affected across southern Türkiye and northwest Syria, tens of thousands of lives have been lost, and millions upon millions of people have lost their homes, livelihoods and assets.

CAIRO/ROME – The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has stepped up its emergency response to support victims of the devastating earthquake in Syria and Türkiye, providing emergency food assistance to nearly half a million quake-affected people in the two countries through hot meals, emergency ready-to-eat food packages and family food rations.

ANKARA/DAMASCUS – The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has delivered urgently needed food assistance to 115,000 people in Syria and Türkiye in the first four days since deadly earthquakes struck the region, killing thousands and forcing tens of thousands into the freezing outside temperatures. Distributions are ongoing.

ANKARA/DAMASCUS – The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) is on the ground responding to the devastating impact of the two earthquakes that hit Türkiye and Syria on Monday. WFP food assistance has been underway since Tuesday with plans to reach half a million people in both countries.

DAMASCUS – The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) Executive Director, David Beasley, arrived in Syria this week and appealed to the world to invest in the Syrian people and communities to get them on their feet and off food assistance.

NEW YORK/GENEVA/ROME - "United Nations Security Council resolution 2642 – which allows for life-saving humanitarian aid to be delivered to north-west Syria from across the Turkish border – is set to expire in eight days. If the Council fails to extend it, the consequences will be catastrophic for 4.1 million people in non-Government controlled areas. Most of them are women and children who need assistance just to survive at the peak of winter and amidst a serious cholera outbreak.

DAMASCUS – The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has welcomed a recent contribution of EUR 15 million from the European Union to help scale up its assistance to over half a million people in urgent need of food assistance across Syria.

Jordan – The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has welcomed a timely contribution of US$6 million from Saudi Arabia’s King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Centre (KSrelief) to provide food assistance to Syrian refugee families living in camps in Jordan.

DAMASCUS – The United Nations World Food Programme welcomed a recent contribution of US$6 million from the Government of Japan to support the distribution of food rations to some 250,000 people in urgent need of food assistance across Syria.

CAIRO – The war in Ukraine has dealt a fresh hammer blow to Syria’s ability to feed itself just as the country struggles to deal with levels of hunger that are up by half since 2019, the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) said today on the eve of the annual donor pledging conference held in Brussels.

CAIRO – As the Muslim holy month of Ramadan begins, the soaring cost of food staples in import-dependent Middle Eastern and North African countries is creating ever greater challenges for millions of families already struggling to keep hunger at bay, the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) said today.

DAMASCUS – The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) in Syria has welcomed a donation of US$5 million from the Government of Japan to provide lifesaving food to vulnerable families to help them through the harsh winter months.

DAMASCUS/BEIRUT – United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) Executive Director David Beasley has warned that more Syrians are in the grip of hunger today than at any time during their country’s decade-long conflict, blaming a deadly combination of conflict, climate change, COVID and rising food and fuel costs.

CAIRO – The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) welcomes a donation package totalling €7.5 million (approximately US$8.1 million) from the Government of Belgium to support the food agency’s response to rising food needs in Ethiopia, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine, and Syria.

BAGHDAD – The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has received a US$1 million contribution from the Republic of Korea to support WFP’s food assistance for up to 327,000 internally displaced people (IDPs) and Syrian refugees until the end of the year, who are living in camps.

DAMASCUS – The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has welcomed a new contribution of EUR 3 million from the European Union to scale up cash-based assistance to approximately 30,000 vulnerable and food insecure Syrians who are in urgent need of humanitarian assistance.

DAMASCUS – At a time when humanitarian needs across Syria are greater than ever, the United Nations Humanitarian Air Service (UNHAS) in Syria has received 1 million Euro from the European Union (EU) to ensure that humanitarians can continue to reach vulnerable families.

DAMASCUS – With a record number of Syrians struggling to meet their basic needs, the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) welcomes a donation of 109 million Euro from the German Federal Foreign Office (GFFO) to provide lifesaving food and nutrition support to millions of vulnerable people in 2021 - 2022.

ROME – Millions of refugees are looking to a future of uncertainty and hunger as the effects of the pandemic on aid budgets play out in funding shortages for emergency operations, the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) warned ahead of World Refugee Day.

Rome/Geneva/New York - Millions of people are pressed up against the border in an active war zone in north-west Syria and remain in need of humanitarian aid to survive. The UN needs cross-border and cross-line access to reach those most in need.