Seán Sherlock (Cork East, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I fully endorse the concerns expressed by Senator Power. The Syrian conflict has been a litany of unimaginable horrors. More than half the population has been displaced by violence and almost two thirds of Syrians, 12 million people, are in need of humanitarian assistance. Less than half of Syria's hospitals are fully functioning and around one quarter of schools have been damaged, destroyed or converted into shelters. This has left more than 2 million children without full-time education, jeopardising the future of the next generation.

The Assad regime's permissive approach to the rise of jihadist terrorist groups like ISIS proves that the regime is indifferent to the safety of its own people and to the survival of minorities, including the ancient Christian and other religious minorities across Syria. Countering the horrific brutality and extremist ideology of these groups is essential to the protection of vulnerable minorities across the Middle East. Ireland has called on the Security Council to refer the Syrian conflict to the International Criminal Court. In 2014, Ireland provided €14.9 million in funding to address the Syria crisis via NGO partners, the United Nations and the Red Cross and Red Crescent. This includes €2.4 million provided in 2014 to the World Food Programme for food assistance. This brings the total funding we have provided since the beginning of the crisis to almost €30 million.

The needs are enormous. It is not just a matter of providing aid but also of ensuring that it can get through to the people who most need it. This is particularly difficult inside Syria due to government bureaucracy, the hazards of the ongoing conflict and the threats to humanitarian personnel, which make it all but impossible to work in ISIS-controlled areas. The UN has authorised the delivery of cross-border assistance even without Syrian Government permission, as well as delivery across conflict lines, in an effort to reach as many people as possible. Ireland uses a number of different partners to deliver our aid in order to ensure the greatest access possible and to support refugees and host communities in neighbouring countries. Due to the violence and the lack of access to aid, huge numbers of people have left Syria, primarily overland into neighbouring countries. Some 3.8 million Syrians have fled their country and that number grows every day. Essential services such as health, education and access to water are under pressure in Lebanon, Jordan and Turkey. One in three people in Lebanon are refugees, placing the entire country under great strain. Syria's neighbours are also suffering security incidents from the spillover of the conflict.

Ireland and its EU partners have consistently supported the core principles of an end to violence and a political transition to a representative government representing Syrians from all communities, as set out in the 2012 Geneva communiqué. We have also expressed our support for the conflict freeze initiative proposed by UN special envoy, Staffan di Mistura, who met with EU foreign Ministers in December. Despite the failure of past efforts to negotiate an end to the violence, we have a duty to continue working for a political resolution to the conflict and will continue to work towards that end.