Almost 12, children have been killed or wounded, according to the UN children's agency Unicef. The government's key supporters have been Russia and Iran, while Turkey, Western powers and several Gulf Arab states have backed the opposition to varying degrees over the past decade. Russia - which had military bases in Syria before the war - launched an air campaign in support of Mr Assad in that has been crucial in turning the tide of the war in the government's favour.
The Russian military says its strikes only target "terrorists" but activists say they regularly kill mainstream rebels and civilians. Iran is believed to have deployed hundreds of troops and spent billions of dollars to help Mr Assad. Thousands of Shia Muslim militiamen armed, trained and financed by Iran - mostly from Lebanon's Hezbollah movement, but also Iraq, Afghanistan and Yemen - have also fought alongside the Syrian army.
But they have prioritised non-lethal assistance since jihadists became the dominant force in the armed opposition. A US-led global coalition has also carried out air strikes and deployed special forces in Syria since to help an alliance of Kurdish and Arab militias called the Syrian Democratic Forces SDF capture territory once held by IS militants in the north-east. Turkey is a major supporter of the opposition, but its focus has been on using rebel factions to contain the Kurdish YPG militia that dominates the SDF, accusing it of being an extension of a banned Kurdish rebel group in Turkey.
Turkish troops and allied rebels have seized stretches of territory along Syria's northern border and intervened to stop an all-out assault by government forces on the last opposition stronghold of Idlib. Saudi Arabia , which is keen to counter Iranian influence, armed and financed the rebels at the start of the war, as did the kingdom's Gulf rival, Qatar. Israel , meanwhile, has been so concerned by what it calls Iran's "military entrenchment" in Syria and shipments of Iranian weapons to Hezbollah and other Shia militias that it has conducted air strikes with increasing frequency in an attempt to thwart them.
As well as causing hundreds of thousands of deaths, more than 2. More than half of Syria's pre-war population of 22 million have fled their homes. Some 6. One million Syrian refugee children have been born in exile. As of January , There are many players in the Syrian conflict. Since then, many groups have joined the fighting, with many fighting each other.
International involvement has shaped the course of the conflict too. Why have peace talks failed? Many peace negotiations have taken place over the years, but they have failed. Open all. How has the country been affected? Hamda and her children pictured above are one of the millions of families who were forced to flee their home in Syria.
They are currently living at a displacement camp. There is still an exhausting level of upheaval for many and there is no clear path to peace.
Where have Syrian refugees gone? Other families have fled to neighbouring Iraq, Egypt or North Africa. Some refugees have fled to European countries. With a severely degraded healthcare system, Syrians remain extremely vulnerable to additional shocks, such as the COVID outbreak still unfolding.
Prior to the conflict, the World Bank Group provided support to Syria through its technical assistance and advisory services on private sector development, human development, social protection, and environmental sustainability.
Following the onset of the conflict in , all World Bank operational activity and missions to Syria were halted. Nonetheless, the World Bank monitors the impact of the conflict on the Syrian people and the economy in consultation with other members of the international community.
This helps inform international thinking on Syria from an economic and social perspective and build preparedness for post-agreement recovery efforts, when and if mandated.
The longer the conflict lasts, the more difficult recovery will be, as these losses become more persistent over time.
The Mobility of Displaced Syrians February tackled the complex problem of refugee returns. With UNHCR support, the report compared the characteristics of more than , Syrians UNHCR verified to have returned spontaneously between and mid, to those of millions of others who did not return in the same period. In explaining their patterns of return, the report analyzed the roles played by the individual economic, social, and demographic characteristics of these groups, as well as the conditions they faced in host countries and the conditions in the places where they were from in Syria.
This involved considering both what refugees said survey responses and what they did actual return decisions. Results showed that refugees face a difficult trade-off between living in a secure area and maintaining their quality of life. For some, their houses, villages and cities have been destroyed and they have little to return to.
To return to Syria risks intimidation, violence and imprisonment. Forced disappearance or being forcibly conscripted into the army are also real risks. It is important that any return of refugees is done in a way that is voluntary, dignified and safe. Whole towns and cities have to be rebuilt. Syrian children are facing some of the most difficult conditions than they have ever had in the year conflict.
They are more likely now than ever to be in need of aid, go hungry, die from preventable illness, or miss school. On top of all of these challenges, there have been over 15, cases of Covid detected within Syria, and almost a thousand people have died. Case numbers are growing and community transmission of the virus is now widespread.
Given the huge problems Syria is already facing, it is extremely worrying that Covid may spread rapidly, particularly in crowded refugee camp settings where social distancing is almost impossible. The economic fallout of Covid restrictions has hit refugees badly, particularly in Lebanon which was already experiencing a major economic collapse before Covid hit.
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