One year ago, the end of Bashar al-Assad’s 24-year rule marked a historic moment that raised hopes that Syria was on the path toward peace and recovery. Yet the reality remains devastating. Fighting continues in the north and south, and the humanitarian crisis is far from over. Today, nine out of ten Syrians live below the poverty line. Nearly 17 million people require urgent assistance to survive, and more than nine million face acute food insecurity.
“I am very grateful that Lebanon has taken us in, but I hope that the situation in Syria will improve so that we can return,” says Rima Mansour, who fled from Tartus with her husband and eight children to Akkar, Lebanon—just ten kilometres from the Syrian border.
She left three months after the political change, when summary executions on a sectarian basis forced more than 80,000 people to flee. Now, she and her family live in a single room where 10 people are forced to share a mattress and some blankets. They depend on humanitarian aid for food, drinking water and medicine.
Rima’s story represents thousands of families whose lives have been on hold for years.
Inside Syria, conditions remain dire. The long years of conflict have displaced almost seven million people. Returning home for some is dangerous due to ongoing violence, landmines, and the risk of kidnapping.
Large parts of the country’s cities lie in ruins. Basic services barely function. Healthcare is critically limited: just over half of the nation’s hospitals remain operational. Hunger, drought, and contamination from unexploded ordnance continue to devastate agricultural production.
Although nearly two million people have returned since December 2024, reconstruction needs remain immense and overwhelmingly underfunded.
Since 2008, Action Against Hunger has been working in Syria and responding to growing humanitarian needs. As the crisis escalated, our teams have expanded emergency assistance while working to bolster the long-term resilience of vulnerable communities.
Our teams have restored access to clean water by repairing damaged systems, organizing water trucking, and providing hygiene education. Families have received cash support to cover essential needs, while small-scale farmers and herders have benefited from seeds, tools, and technical training.
We have rehabilitated health facilities, deployed mobile medical teams, and delivered targeted nutritional assistance to prevent and treat acute malnutrition.
Action Against Hunger urges the international community to significantly increase funding for life-saving food security programs; accelerate the rebuilding of essential services such as healthcare, water and sanitation; and strengthen Syria’s agricultural sector.
This includes providing farmers and livestock owners with cash assistance, seeds, tools, and feed, as well as supporting climate-resilient and sustainable food production systems that can revive Syria’s long-term self-reliance.
Action Against Hunger leads the global movement to end hunger. We innovate solutions, advocate for change, and reach 21 million people every year with proven hunger prevention and treatment programs. As a nonprofit that works across 56 countries, our 8,900 dedicated staff members partner with communities to address the root causes of hunger, including climate change, conflict, inequity, and emergencies. We strive to create a world free from hunger, for everyone, for good.
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