The ETC operates under the ‘Whole of Syria (WoS)’ approach which comprises activities in Turkey, Lebanon and Jordan for an effective humanitarian response inside Syria. These Situation Reports are distributed every three months. The next report will be issued on or around 31/08/17
Highlights
The Emergency Telecommunications Cluster (ETC) delivered radio communications procedures training to over 200 humanitarians in Aleppo, Damascus and Homs.
The ETC received a contribution of US$200,000 out of the required US$670,170 that will be used to continue providing security telecommunications and Internet connectivity services and training in Syria and the surrounding countries until the end of 2017.
An inter-agency mission was conducted in a military-controlled zone in the northeast of Jordan to explore the possibility of expanding the ETC Internet connectivity services.
Situation Overview
The United Nations (UN) estimates that approximately 4.5 million people currently live in hard-to-reach locations, including approximately 624,500 people in besieged areas of Dayr az Zawr, Damascus, Homs, Idlib, and Rif Dimashq governorates.
Reports indicate armed hostilities in Quneitra and in Dar’a’s southern neighbourhoods of Manshiyeh and Sajnah continue. Humanitarian actors remain concerned with negative impacts of a possible escalation in violence along the main highway connecting Damascus to the border with Jordan. So far, there has been no reported disruption of access for the inter-agency convoys from Jordan.
According to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the offensive on Raqqa has intensified recently, with more than 100 air and artillery strikes reported to have caused many civilian casualties.