Syria stressed that the takfiri terrorism which pervaded the country streaming from Arab and regional countries and shed the blood of innocents, demolished infrastructure and practiced coercive displacement on sectarian bases has forced many citizens to be displaced inside the country.

Syria\'s Permanent Representative to the UN in Geneva, Faissal al-Hamwi, addressed the Forum of the UN High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) on "Protecting Internally Displaced People in the World", saying Syria has never throughout its history known the problem of internally displaced people, except for that of the Syrians who were displaced by Israel from the Syrian Golan after its aggression on 1967.

On the country, al-Hamwi said, Syria has always provided a safe haven for all the refugees whom it hosted from various countries, embracing them with tolerance "without having to set up even one camp for them".

Delivering Syria\'s statement, he affirmed that the Syrian government has from the start of the crisis given top priority to secure humanitarian needs and aid to the citizens who were forced to leave their homes.

Al-Hamwi stressed that the government now meets 80 percent of the total aid provided to the displaced citizens, noting that a budge of SYP 30 billion was allocated for 2013, while SYP 50 billion were allotted for 2014 to provide the necessary needs in this regard.

The money, he added, were put in the charge of the Reconstruction Committee, which is tasked with compensating citizens who lost their homes and rehabilitating damaged infrastructure and the Higher Commission for Syrian Relief, which works to take all needed measures to ensure the displaced people\'s return to their homes in the areas made safe.

The Relief Commission, al-Hamwi noted, follows up on the conditions of displaced people staying at the makeshift shelters to feel all of their basic living needs.

Syria\'s Representative pointed out in the statement that the Ministry of Social Affairs is currently cooperating with 95 listed civil associations to provide direct services to people affected by the current events in the country, a list that gets updated monthly in conformity with implementing the humanitarian response plan.

Al-Hamwi also underscored the Syrian government\'s continuing cooperation with UN organizations working in the humanitarian field in Syria since the outset of the crisis, offering them all facilitations up to setting and constantly updating the response plan.

He continued as saying that the plan of humanitarian response plan for 2014 will be launched in Geneva in few days as it is now under preparation by the Syrian government in cooperation with the UN, noting that this is being done based on the UN General Assembly resolution 46/182 that stresses Syrian\'s government\'s leading role and respecting its state\'s sovereignty.

Al-Hamwi however cited main challenges facing the Syrian government\'s efforts in responding to the needs of the affected and displaced people, most importantly being the destructive terrorist operations and the illegal unilateral sanctions imposed on the Syrian people.

He said these sanctions provoked "dangerous repercussions" as they targeted the Syrian people\'s livelihood, health and education situation and many of their other basic rights.

The sanctions, al-Hamwi added, caused development project chances to dwindle and impeded the official and private institutions\' duty in meeting the citizens\' needs, in addition to leaving an impact on the efforts of the UN humanitarian agencies operating in Syria.

Another dangerous challenge the humanitarian response efforts, Syria\'s UN Representative said, is some international organizations failing to meet their duties and sometimes attempting to politicize their mandate to swerve it away from its humanitarian dimension.

Despite of these challenges, al-Hamwi added, the Syrian government is pressing ahead with its efforts and has agreed in this light to open three offices of the UN in Aleppo, Qamishli and Sweida to cover the northern, eastern and southern areas and deliver aid to the displaced Syrians and Palestinians.

The Syrian government also agreed to use the official border crossings with Lebanon, Jordan and Iraq to allow in relief supplies.

"Indubitably the problem of displacement has humanitarian dimensions in the first place, yet its causes are mostly political," said al-Hamwi, adding that no matter the scale of aid, it will still fall short of solving this problem and fully and permanently ending the suffering caused by it unless its root causes.

He noted that this issue also applies to the Syrians who were forced to be internally displaced, reiterating that solving the suffering of those entails ceasing foreign support and funds to the armed terrorist groups