There is increasing talk, in theoretical literature and local contexts of ongoing conflicts in the Middle East, of humanitarian corridors, also known as humanitarian crossings or quiet passageways. These corridors are called for by parties to local conflicts or regional powers to impose calm or allow withdrawals, displacement, evacuation or protection of civilians and military personnel during ongoing fighting. In this sense, these corridors serve as protected zones or safe havens.
But operating such corridors faces challenges that, sometimes, make them unsafe or “death terrains”. The challenges emanate from disagreement between warring parties about the establishment of corridors, exceptions made for armed factions as part of truces, lack of United Nations military protection, the targeting of corridors to evacuate or forcibly displace, once again, civilian populations backing armed opposition factions.
Drawing on experiences from the past three years in Syria, Iraq, Yemen, Libya and South Sudan, the goals of creating humanitarian corridors in conflict zones in this region can be outlined as follows:
Protecting Trapped Civilians.
1- Saving Civilians’ Lives. Safe corridors are used to allow civilians, who are besieged or caught in conflict zones and combat lines, a chance to leave safely based on purely humanitarian purposes, as is the case during intense fighting. According to Article 23 of the 4th Geneva Convention of 1949, which is part of international humanitarian law, all parties shall allow the free passage of all consignments of medical and hospital stores” and shall also permit the free passage of all consignments of essential foodstuffs and clothing intended for all civilians and facilitate withdrawal through safe passageways.
On February 27, 2018, Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered a five-hour daily ceasefire (from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.) to allow civilians to exit the armed opposition-held Eastern Ghouta region through a “humanitarian corridor” after confrontations intensified. Additionally, French Defense Minister Florence Parly, on February 9, 2018 called for an end to air strikes against the opposition-held areas in Idlib province and eastern Damascus, and the immediate opening of humanitarian corridors, according to Reuters. Parly further said it was unacceptable that civilians were being targeted.
In Libya, Fayez al-Sarraj, head of the Presidential Council, and Prime Minister of the Government of National Accord, on November 2, 2017, called on the United Nations to intervene immediately to open safe corridors for humanitarian organizations, especially the Red Crescent and the Red Cross, to allow delivery of essential humanitarian aid to people in Derna City. The International Migration, between 2016 and 2017, called for the opening of humanitarian corridors to reach thousands of Iraqis who fled the fight with ISIS.
Removing Adversaries
2- Evacuating Armed Fighters. In some cases, adversaries can be allowed to leave through such corridors after an agreement is reached on implementation mechanisms. In Eastern Ghouta, on March 8, opposition fighters were allowed to leave through the al-Wafideen checkpoint. Two days earlier, on March 6, the Russian defense ministry said in a statement that Syrian opposition fighters can leave Eastern Ghouta with their families and personal weapons through a secure corridor in the enclave where Bashar al-Assad regime’s forces made rapid gains. It pledged to provide vehicles and guard the entire route.
Nonetheless, Russia’s proposal did not specify where the rebels would go, but its terms echo previous evacuation deals under which the opposition fighters have ceded ground and departed to opposition-held territory in north Syria near the Turkish border.
Helping Affected Communities
3- Providing Relief to Citizens. Last year, the United Nations announced that a fourth humanitarian corridor will be opened in late November via Sudan to deliver humanitarian assistance to victims of famine in South Sudan. The corridor runs from White Nile State in Sudan to Upper Nile State in South Sudan.
Helping Refugee Camps
4- Alleviating the Suffering of the Displaced. On February 21, 2018, residents of the Palestinian refugee camp of Yarmouk, south of Damascus, Syria, in an appeal published by the Action Group for Palestinians of Syria, demanded the opening of an emergency humanitarian corridor to evacuate seriously ill people. The residents suffer from absence of medical care and are deprived of the most basic necessities of life and have no free access to hospitals in Damascus. Some patients were allowed to exit the camp to Damascus for treatment during 2017 using permits granted by the Palestinian Liberation Organization, in coordination with the Syrian regime security services. The arrangement was stopped in late 2017.
Empowering Refugees
5- Refugee Resettlement. On December 24, 2017, Italian interior minister Marco Minniti said that up to 10,000 refugees stranded in camps in Libya will be able to come to Europe without risk, through humanitarian corridors in 2018. The group was sponsored by the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) which considered them as refugees and not asylum seekers. Upon arrival in Rome the refugees benefit from economic assistance and social integration programs including language classes, vocational training as well as schools for their children.
Moreover, Italy’s Federation of Protestant Churches, and a group of Catholic churches launched a resettlement initiative for refugees in 2015, after an increasing number of illegal migrants tried to cross the Mediterranean to Europe over past years. The initiative also sought to combat human trafficking gangs representing criminal interests that benefit from the consequences of chaos in the region.
The Federation signed an agreement with the Italian government allowing people in need of urgent protection to move to Italy as legal migrants. The agreement is based on Article 25, on issuing of a visa with limited territorial validity for non-Europeans, of Regulation (EC) No 810/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council.
Additionally, the initiative is focused on resettling refugees from Lebanon and Morocco regardless of their ethnic or religious background. People benefiting from the “Humanitarian Corridors” initiative include victims of conflict, persecution, torture and violence; pregnant women and single mothers; unaccompanied minors; victims of human trafficking; disabled people or those affected by serious diseases.
A three-step process is undertaken to select vulnerable people. Firstly, a team from “Humanitarian Corridors” visit refugee camps in the two countries to work with UNHCR to identify and interview potential vulnerable people. In the second step, the selected people are provided with a safe flight to Italy. This spares them a dangerous journey by old boat across the Mediterranean, and allows them to take luggage with them.
Once in Italy, the third step involves supporting these people to integrate with society and help them in finding housing, language classes and schools for children as well as in seeking jobs. In late October, 2017, a total of 1,000 people were resettled in Italy. The project has just been extended, with plans to resettle another 1000 people in 2018 and 2019. Building on the success of the initiative in Italy, France opened a humanitarian corridor to Lebanon in March 2017, with plans put in place for the immediate intake of 500 refugees.
Support Plan
6- Improving Living Conditions of People. In Yemen, humanitarian corridors were created by Saudi Arabia as part of the Isnad center initiative which goes beyond only providing humanitarian aid to the Yemeni people to implement a comprehensive development plan throughout the country.
In statements delivered on February 2, 2018, Saudi Ambassador to Yemen and CEO of Isnad Mohammed al-Jaber, said that the humanitarian program is based on a long-term plan that involves the central bank and 17 safe passages that originate from six main centers. The plan aims to expand seaports, construct roads and crossings, create jobs for thousands of Yemenis while launching efforts to deliver relief to remote areas.
The plan is being carried out in coordination with the legitimate Yemeni government, the United Nations and international organizations to solve the humanitarian crisis and address the problem of blocking delivery of aid to areas controlled by the Houthi insurgents.
Attack on Truth
7- Protecting Journalists and Media Persons. Journalists covering conflicts and reporting on armed confrontations do so to enlighten the local, regional and international public opinion about the reality on the ground. Mechanisms that need to be developed to protect them from threats should, according to some voices, include the creation of safe corridors for journalists, similar to those for humanitarian purposes.
There are two drivers behind calls for such corridors for journalists. The first is that truth, which each involved party is willing to bend to serve its own interests, is among the first victims of armed conflicts and internal wars. The second is the increasing problem of impunity of perpetrators of attacks on journalists and media persons during armed conflicts.
Multiple Hurdles
The following group of challenges block the success of humanitarian corridors:
1- Failure of Warring Parties to Agree on Establishing Corridors. Opposing goals of warring parties and incompatible decisions to impose safe havens for civilians or refugees fleeing conflict zones lead to failure to achieve significant success. In Syria, for instance, while the government army aims to recapture more swathes of territory and isolate areas held by opposition factions, Russia wants to strengthen its military bases in the country.
With no signs of international pressure to stop the military attack, Eastern Ghouta seems likely to meet the same fate as other areas won back by the government forces, where, according to Reuters, humanitarian corridors eventually became escape routes for defeated opposition fighters due to heavy exchange of fire between the warring parties.
On March 1, 2018, International Committee of the Red Cross spokeswoman Ingy Sedky said that it is difficult for any civilians to use such corridors without adequate assurances, and no family made up of a woman and children would risk their lives if no security guarantees are given, according to AFP. She added that civilians there are concerned because no agreement was reached between the parties.
2- Exceptions for Armed Factions in Truce Agreements. In Syria, for instance, UN Security Council Resolution 2401 demands a cessation of hostilities without delay for at least 30 consecutive days throughout Syria to facilitate the delivery of humanitarian assistance to those in need and enable weekly humanitarian aid deliveries and medical evacuations of the critically sick and wounded.
The cessation of hostilities would not apply to military operations against ISIS, al-Qaeda, Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (al-Nusra Front) and all other individuals, groups, undertakings and entities associated with terrorist groups, as designated by the Council.
Such exceptions open the door for conflicting interpretations, especially because the Assad regime label opposition factions as terrorist organizations thus endangering the implementation of a full and comprehensive ceasefire.
3- Lack of UN military protection. A main issue blocking the operation of humanitarian corridors is failure of regional and international parties to curb armed organizations involved in conflicts and oblige them to respect humanitarian and security arrangements made for civilians. Armed opposition forces and extremist organizations consider this as a bid to promote truce agreements aimed at confusing armed factions.
That is one of the reasons why safe corridors continue to be jeopardized during internal armed conflicts. Although United Nations, multinational or regional peacekeeping forces, regional troops are often offered to protect humanitarian corridors, these troops would lose neutrality and impartiality if they resort to the use of military force in accordance with Chapter VII of the United Nations Charter. Such use of force can be seen as interference in the internal affairs of parties to the conflict.
4- Attacks on Corridors Established to Evacuate Civilians Backing Armed Opposition. Such corridors are created to protect civilians affected by fighting between parties to conflict, but can nonetheless, in certain cases, help these parties in killing civilians. Civilians have doubts about corridors designated as safe routes. In Syria for instance, the Assad regime’s media accused the opposition factions of targeting civilians exiting through the al-Wafideen checkpoint in north-east of Douma City. The accusations were denied by Hamza Bayraqdar, the chief military spokesman of the Jaish al-Islam, the largest armed faction in Eastern Ghouta.
5- New Forcible Displacement of Civilians. Syrian civilians in Eastern Ghouta are made to choose between being killed by shelling or being forcibly displaced, although those fleeing the area should not be forced to depart the area and take certain routes or go to certain areas.
In conclusion, supporting the role of humanitarian corridors in armed conflict zones in the Arab region is a difficult task. Reasons include a multiplicity of parties, including warring parties, affected local communities, UN agencies and NGOs, which all can impact the effectiveness of these corridors, especially amid escalating humanitarian crises caused by political turmoil and security chaos for which no solution is in sight.
