Siege and shortages of humanitarian aid deepen humanitarian crisis in Suwayda

During a visit to a public bakery in Suwayda, where citizens were seen standing in long queues for a single loaf of bread, public bakery director Muwafaq Abdul-Baqi described the depth of the crisis afflicting the city under siege and destruction.

 He noted that the mass displacement of residents from devastated villages into the city center has created extreme overcrowding and sharply increased demand for bread and other essential foodstuffs.

According to Abdul-Baqi, the small quantities of humanitarian aid sporadically delivered by local associations last only a day or two and fail to meet even the minimum needs of the population. Official relief deliveries via roads under Interim Government control are deliberately hindered.

Shortages extend beyond flour to include the fuel needed to operate bakeries, further disrupting operations and increasing pressure on public facilities, given the limited production capacity of private bakeries.

He warned that the continuation of these conditions threatens the city’s food security and called for the immediate, impartial, and unconditional delivery of aid on a continuous basis, urging international organizations and relevant authorities to intervene without political preconditions.

Resident Ibtisam al-Safadi described the humiliating ordeal of waiting for hours in bread lines amid deprivation, hunger, and near-total shortages of basic goods. She stressed that the suffering of the population is compounded by mass displacement, the loss of loved ones on the front lines, and the complete absence of meaningful governmental support.

Engineer, human rights activist, and political figure Muthanna al-Hanawi stated that Suwayda has been under a suffocating siege for over 25 days, following a systematic sectarian attack that claimed the lives of more than 5,000 people, including women and children. He reported that 32 villages have been reduced to rubble, 12 have been entirely emptied of their residents, and more than 150,000 displaced people are now concentrated in and around Suwayda under catastrophic living conditions.

According to al-Hanawi, the aid that reaches the city is minimal, while most trucks are held at the boundaries of Daraa and many are sent back to Damascus after being filmed, as the Interim Government insists on being the sole distributor—a condition flatly rejected by residents. He asserted that “a government that has killed its own people has no legitimacy to distribute aid,” rejecting the Red Crescent’s involvement, citing its complete subordination to state security bodies and leaders linked to Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham.

He called for the opening of crossings with Jordan and the Autonomous Administration, the passage of relief convoys via the Hawi Bridge, the entry of international media, and the formation of an international fact-finding commission.

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ANHA