KEY DEVELOPMENTS
• The U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) offensive to retake the city of Ar Raqqah from the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) continues to drive displacement in Ar Raqqah Governorate. As of April 8, the offensive had displaced more than 50,000 people in the governorate since the offensive began in November 2016, according to the UN. In recent days, an estimated 39,000 people arrived to the informal Job Ash Sheer camp in Ar Raqqah, and the UN estimates an additional 21,000 internally displaced persons (IDPs) may arrive at the camp in the coming days.
• Nearly 5.8 million people remained displaced in Syria as of March, according to the ninth round of the Needs and Population Monitoring’s Population Baseline Report. The report, released by U.S. Government (USG) partner the International Organization for Migration (IOM) on April 20, represents data collected in March on displacement and shelter trends across Syria’s 14 governorates. The majority of IDPs—approximately 1.3 million people—were residing in Rif Damascus Governorate, while nearly 944,000 people were residing in Aleppo Governorate.
• On April 26, UN Assistant Secretary-General and Regional Humanitarian Coordinator (ASG/RHC) for the Syria Crisis Kevin Kennedy and Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator (RC/HC) for Syria Ali Al-Za’tari released a statement condemning a series of recent airstrikes impacting health facilities in Idlib Governorate. The UN reports at least six airstrikes on hospitals in the area between April 1 and 26, affecting or suspending facility operations and causing at least four deaths. ASG/RHC Kennedy and RC/HC AlZa’tari called on all parties to the conflict to abide by international humanitarian law and protect civilians and civilian infrastructure.