Around 70% of Syria’s population—over 15 million people—depends on humanitarian aid for their survival, according to the UN. The country’s economy has been severely hurt due to a decade-long war and sanctions imposed by the US and its allies, with the situation worsening since the disastrous earthquake in February

Syria’s ambassador to the United Nations and its deputy foreign minister, Bashar al-Jaafari, alleged that occupation forces and terrorist groups act together to loot Syria’s economic resources

Alena Douhan, the UN special rapporteur about the negative impact of the unilateral coercive measures on human rights, said the US sanctions violated the human rights of the Syrian people

The newly imposed unilateral sanctions by the US are likely to harm the Syrian government’s efforts to rejuvenate the economy. Already existing EU and US sanctions are seen as among the main hurdles to the reconstruction process in Syria

The Syrian government has denounced the US sanctions as illegal and an example of US’ “thuggish behaviour”