Today's top news: South Sudan, Syria

People fleeing Sudan at the Joda border crossing point in Renk, Upper Nile State. South Sudan. OCHA/Wilfred Iramaku

South Sudan

The humanitarian community is calling for urgent funding for transportation for people fleeing Sudan to South Sudan.

Many of those fleeing are vulnerable with no financial resources to continue their journey inside the country. The vast majority of these people are South Sudanese returnees.

Until now, South Sudanese authorities and the humanitarian community have been able to provide transportation assistance so that people can reach their final destinations by road, river or air.

However, without new funding, humanitarian agencies will be forced to halt transportation in two weeks’ time.

With no onward transportation available, more people will become stranded in and around the border towns where humanitarian services are already overstretched.

We need US$26.4 million to continue providing transportation support until the end of the year.

Syria

OCHA staff along with the World Health Organization (WHO) carried out two regular missions from southern Türkiye to north-west Syria today, through the Bab al-Salam border crossing.

In Azaz, OCHA staff visited a pediatric hospital supported by the Syria Cross-Border Humanitarian Fund. WHO conducted monitoring and provided technical support at several health facilities.

The UN has completed nearly 170 cross-border missions to north-west Syria since the February earthquakes.

In the coming days, additional staff missions and truck movements are planned through the Bab al-Salam and al-Ra'ee crossings.