The United Nations Office at Geneva
Multimedia Newsroom
Syria: fears of a ‘bloodbath’ as shelling nears terrified, traumatised displacement camps
Around a million civilians in northwest Syria could face “a real bloodbath, a real massacre” amid an ongoing push by Government forces in the country’s last opposition-held region, a senior UN humanitarian warned on Monday.
“The fighting is now coming dangerously close to the area where more than a million are living in tents and makeshift shelters, so it’s an extremely alarming situation, because if airstrikes move and shelling move any further into that area, we are no doubt going to see a real bloodbath, a real massacre of civilians in that area,” said Mark Cutts, Deputy Regional Humanitarian Coordinator for the Syria Crisis.
Speaking in Geneva, Mr. Cutts told journalists that as people have fled violence, seeking shelter close to the country’s border with Turkey, “the bombs have just been following them from place to place. And these people feel abandoned by the entire world. They are dumbfounded that no-one seems to be coming to their rescue.”
He added: “What people are asking for at the moment is not just tents and blankets and food, they’re calling for the killing of civilians to stop. They want the fighting to stop, the carnage to stop.”
The violence – which has seen more than 900,000 civilians displaced in northwest Syria since 1 December, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) - has been marked by continuing attacks on public infrastructure and built-up areas which are protected under international law.
To date, more than 70 health facilities have been put “out of service” in the affected zone, Mr. Cutts said, citing reports of medical staff in a paediatric hospital “at a loss for what to do” with some 80 infants being cared for in incubators who need evacuating, but have nowhere to go.
“Huge numbers of hospitals and schools and marketplaces and bakeries and water stations have been hit by airstrikes and shelling in the past few months, and there’s a population now that is terrorised and traumatised and living in fear,” he said.
Help is reaching the affected communities via cross-border aid deliveries from Turkey, but much more assistance is needed, Mr. Cutts explained, as he announced an upscaled Emergency Response Plan appeal for $500 million for 1.1 million people.
“In January, we had 1,200 trucks of aid go in; in February so far, we’ve already had more than 700 trucks of aid go in. So the aid is flowing, there is a big aid operation. But the reality is, it’s simply not enough.”
- Wide shot: exterior, flag alley, Palais des Nations, United Nations Geneva.
- Wide shot: Press briefing room, journalists, podium with speakers and UN logo.
- SOUNDBITE (EN) — Mark Cutts, Deputy Regional Humanitarian Coordinator for the Syria Crisis: “The fighting is now coming dangerously close to the area where more than a million are living in tents and makeshift shelters, so it’s an extremely alarming situation, because if airstrikes move and shelling move any further into that area, we are no doubt going to see a real bloodbath, a real massacre of civilians in that area.”
- Medium shot: journalists looking at laptop, conferring.
- SOUNDBITE (EN) — Mark Cutts, Deputy Regional Humanitarian Coordinator for the Syria Crisis: “People have been fleeing in fear to the border area and what we’ve seen is the bombs have just been following them from place to place. And these people feel abandoned by the entire world. They are dumbfounded that no-one seems to be coming to their rescue.”
- Medium shot, journalist typing on mobile phone.
- SOUNDBITE (EN) — Mark Cutts, Deputy Regional Humanitarian Coordinator for the Syria Crisis: “Huge numbers of hospitals and schools and marketplaces and bakeries and water stations have been hit by airstrikes and shelling in the past few months, and there’s a population now that is terrorised and traumatised and living in fear.”
- Medium shot: journalist looking at mobile phone.
- SOUNDBITE (EN) — Mark Cutts, Deputy Regional Humanitarian Coordinator for the Syria Crisis: “What people are asking for at the moment is not just tents and blankets and food, they’re calling for the killing of civilians to stop. They want the fighting to stop, the carnage to stop.”
- Medium shot: journalist checking phone, seated in front of laptop.
- SOUNDBITE (EN) — Mark Cutts, Deputy Regional Humanitarian Coordinator for the Syria Crisis: “In January, we had 1,200 trucks of aid go in; in February so far, we’ve already had more than 700 trucks of aid go in. So the aid is flowing, there is a big aid operation. But the reality is, it’s simply not enough.”
- Wide shot: journalists, seated, semi-profile.
- SOUNDBITE (EN) — Mark Cutts, Deputy Regional Humanitarian Coordinator for the Syria Crisis: “Today, we are launching a revised Emergency Response Plan. Where we are appealing for $500 million for 1.1 million people, so we’d like to revise those figures upwards.”
- Medium shot: journalist looking at laptop.
- Wide shot: podium, speakers, UN logo, mural.
- Wide shot: Press room, journalists, seated.
Similar Stories
1
1
Edited News | WHO , UNMAS
Desperate and dangerous conditions in Gaza continue to hamper recovery efforts for the wartorn enclave's people, the UN health agency said on Friday, while demining experts warned that they’ve “barely scratched the surface” in assessing the level of contamination of unexploded ordnance.
2
1
2
Press Conferences , Edited News
The continued support of UN Member States to Lebanon will be “indispensable” to boost the country’s national armed forces and provide humanitarian assistance with more than one million people still uprooted by the Middle East war, the UN's peacekeeping chief said on Wednesday.
2
1
2
Press Conferences , Edited News | UNECE
Middle East war: After oil and gas shortages, concerns grow over critical minerals crunch
The shipping crisis in the Strait of Hormuz caused by war in the Middle East has exposed a new threat: a looming shortage of strategic minerals needed to drive economies all over the world and a race by countries to obtain them.
1
1
1
Edited News | IOM
Millions of desperate Sudanese return home amid dire conditions as war rages – IOM
Three years into the devastating conflict in Sudan, nearly four million displaced people have returned to their places of origin across the country, only to face “another struggle for survival”, the UN International Organization for Migration (IOM) said on Tuesday.
1
1
1
Edited News | UNESCO
UNESCO protects cultural sites in war-torn Middle East, confirming damage to key heritage.
1
1
1
Edited News | UN WOMEN
The war in Gaza has inflicted a far higher toll on women and girls than in previous conflicts in the Palestinian enclave, with more than 38,000 killed by Israeli air bombardment and land military operations since Hamas-led terror attacks in Israel sparked the war in October 2023, UN Women said on Friday.
1
1
1
Edited News | UNHCR
In 2025, nearly 900 Rohingya refugees were reported missing or dead in the Andaman Sea and Bay of Bengal, making it the deadliest year on record in South and Southeast Asia, the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, said on Friday.
1
1
1
Edited News | UNFPA , IFRC
Lebanon faces escalating violence, with new mothers uncertain of safety amid ongoing crises.
1
1
1
Edited News | FAO , UNHCR , WHO
Sudan: 14 million displaced; hunger and attacks on health continue as war enters fourth year
As Sudan approaches the third anniversary of a brutal civil war, millions remain displaced and hungry while the health system lies in ruins, with no end to the violence in sight, UN agencies said on Friday.
1
1
1
Edited News | WHO , UNHCR , WFP
Lebanon: People ‘still under the rubble’ after massive strikes as ambulances, hospitals come under threat – UN humanitarians
With Lebanon still reeling from Israel’s devastating airstrikes on 8 April, UN humanitarians reported new fears of attacks on ambulances and looming food shortages in the south of the country on Friday.
1
1
1
Edited News | UNHCR , WHO
Lebanon: disease risks on the rise as displacement surges
With displacement in Lebanon past the one million mark, UN humanitarians warned on Tuesday about the spread of infectious diseases in shelters and surging mental health needs.
1
1
1
Edited News | UNIFIL
UN peacekeepers are supporting civilians who’ve chosen to stay in the south amid deadly dangers from Israel-Hezbollah clashes, UNIFIL spokesperson Kandace Ardiel tells us.