Price of bread in Idlib and Aleppo skyrockets by 900 percent

(Patria) - With the fall of Bashar al-Assad's regime, the humanitarian situation in Syria remains unstable, the United Nations has announced.

Hospitals across Syria are overcrowded with a large number of patients suffering from severe injuries and trauma, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reported.

Many people are suffering from severe psychological stress, and signs of trauma are particularly evident in children, OCHA stated.

In many major cities, such as the capital Damascus, there are food shortages. Since the start of the rebel offensive, the price of bread in cities like Idlib and Aleppo has increased by 900 percent.

The UN estimates that around one million people have been displaced in Syria since the start of the rebel offensive led by the group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS). The movement of refugees continues.

OCHA warned of minefields that restrict the movement of people and the delivery of goods. In the past 10 days, at least 52 minefields have been identified across the country.

Fourteen years of civil war - and last year's strong earthquakes - have dramatically impoverished Syria, whose gross domestic product fell by 87 percent between 2011 and 2021.

According to UN data, 13 million people - more than half of Syria's population - are on the brink of famine, lacking access to clean water, hygiene, and sanitation. About 96 percent of the population lives on less than seven dollars a day.

The civil war has destroyed Syria's key infrastructure, from healthcare to sewage and the electricity grid.

More than 40 percent of hospitals are not fully functional. Safe and stable housing remains a utopia for millions of residents - let alone for returnees.

Despite constant UN appeals, support from the international community is absolutely insufficient: Syria faces a shortfall of 3 billion dollars in international aid this year.