Are sanctions obstructing aid to Syria?

As the death count from a series of deadly earthquakes that struck Syria and Turkey continues to rise, a debate is emerging over whether western sanctions on Syria are hampering aid to the war-torn country.

Because of the devastation of the quakes, some aid organisations, including the Damascus-based Syrian Arab Red Crescent, have called for sanctions to be lifted on the Assad government.

But many analysts say the situation is far more complex.

“There is no relationship between the West’s punitive sanctions on the Assad regime and the delivery of humanitarian aid - none whatsoever,” Charles Lister, director of the Syrian programme at the Middle East Institute, told MEE.

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Are sanctions obstructing the delivery of aid to Syria?