IRELAND HAS HANDED over €5 million and announced a further €2.5 million to help Syrians affected by the country’s five-year civil war.
Foreign Affairs Minister Charlie Flanagan made the announcement today after meeting the EU Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid Christos Stylianides.
The €5 million will go towards the EU’s humanitarian response to the crisis. The €2.5 million will be paid out in humanitarian assistance through the UN and the Red Cross.
Flanagan said that his talk with the Commissioner had increased his concern about Syria, particularly the besieged town of Aleppo.
He said he was committing the funding to “enhance Ireland’s contribution to meeting the challenges the people of Syria face in accessing food, water and health care”.
“This will bring our total contribution to the Syria crisis since 2012 to over €62 million.
“Ireland remains committed to the delivery of humanitarian assistance.
Every evening on our television screens we see the human toll which the unprecedented number and scale of humanitarian crises is taking, particularly in Aleppo right now.
“There is an onus on all of the international community to do what we can to help alleviate this human suffering and Ireland will continue to play its part.”
Last year, Ireland spend around €142 million on humanitarian aid across the world.
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