A critical aid corridor in northern Syria has closed after the UN Security Council failed to agree on extending it for another year.
Most council members wanted the Bab Al Hawa border crossing with Turkey — a conduit of vital aid for nearly four million Syrians — to remain open for a further 12 months.
Russia said it would not be opposed to maintaining it for six months, but vetoed the year-long extension. A new UN resolution would be needed to keep the crossing open for another six months.
Russia says the deliveries — about 9,000 lorries last year, filled mostly with food aid — violate Syrian sovereignty because they pass through areas held by anti-government rebel groups linked to Al Qaeda.
The last aid deliveries from Turkish territory to Syrians in the rebel-held north-west took place on Friday.
Without an agreement, the aid deliveries stopped two days before Sunday's expiration of the council's one-year mandate.
Mazen Allouche, manager of the crossing's media office, said the closure would be a disaster for people in northern Syria, many of whom have been displaced during the decade-long civil war.
"It's a prelude to a complete and uncontrollable famine," Mr Allouche said. "Refugees will nearly immediately suffer the consequences of this vote.”
Syria is in the grip of rising food prices, not only because of the war in Ukraine — which has pushed global wheat prices — but also because of a prolonged drought that has hit local wheat production.
"Russia pushed us to tents, to hunger, thirst and heat. And now they want to deny us the food aid basket that barely sustains us for half of the month," said Zahra Alrahmoon, a resident of the Ahl Al Tah camp in Idlib province for internally displaced Syrians.
International aid groups urged the Security Council to reach an agreement before Sunday's deadline, warning that the Russian veto would harm millions of people in urgent need of help.
Last month, a joint statement by the UN and international aid agencies operating in Syria said that the closure of the crossing would affect every aspect of life for refugees who are already struggling in harsh conditions.
“Failure to renew the resolution will have dire humanitarian consequences. It will immediately disrupt the UN’s life-saving aid operation, plunging people in north-west Syria into deeper misery and threatening their access to the food, medical care, clean water, shelter and protection from gender-based violence currently offered by UN-backed operations.”
Russia, a close ally of Syria's government, has repeatedly called for increased humanitarian aid deliveries to the north-west from within Syria, across conflict lines.
This would give Syrian President Bashar Al Assad's government more control.
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Asia Cup 2018 Qualifier
Sunday's results:
- UAE beat Malaysia by eight wickets
- Nepal beat Singapore by four wickets
- Oman v Hong Kong, no result
Tuesday fixtures:
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Ten tax points to be aware of in 2026
1. Domestic VAT refund amendments: request your refund within five years
If a business does not apply for the refund on time, they lose their credit.
2. E-invoicing in the UAE
Businesses should continue preparing for the implementation of e-invoicing in the UAE, with 2026 a preparation and transition period ahead of phased mandatory adoption.
3. More tax audits
Tax authorities are increasingly using data already available across multiple filings to identify audit risks.
4. More beneficial VAT and excise tax penalty regime
Tax disputes are expected to become more frequent and more structured, with clearer administrative objection and appeal processes. The UAE has adopted a new penalty regime for VAT and excise disputes, which now mirrors the penalty regime for corporate tax.
5. Greater emphasis on statutory audit
There is a greater need for the accuracy of financial statements. The International Financial Reporting Standards standards need to be strictly adhered to and, as a result, the quality of the audits will need to increase.
6. Further transfer pricing enforcement
Transfer pricing enforcement, which refers to the practice of establishing prices for internal transactions between related entities, is expected to broaden in scope. The UAE will shortly open the possibility to negotiate advance pricing agreements, or essentially rulings for transfer pricing purposes.
7. Limited time periods for audits
Recent amendments also introduce a default five-year limitation period for tax audits and assessments, subject to specific statutory exceptions. While the standard audit and assessment period is five years, this may be extended to up to 15 years in cases involving fraud or tax evasion.
8. Pillar 2 implementation
Many multinational groups will begin to feel the practical effect of the Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (DMTT), the UAE's implementation of the OECD’s global minimum tax under Pillar 2. While the rules apply for financial years starting on or after January 1, 2025, it is 2026 that marks the transition to an operational phase.
9. Reduced compliance obligations for imported goods and services
Businesses that apply the reverse-charge mechanism for VAT purposes in the UAE may benefit from reduced compliance obligations.
10. Substance and CbC reporting focus
Tax authorities are expected to continue strengthening the enforcement of economic substance and Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting frameworks. In the UAE, these regimes are increasingly being used as risk-assessment tools, providing tax authorities with a comprehensive view of multinational groups’ global footprints and enabling them to assess whether profits are aligned with real economic activity.
Contributed by Thomas Vanhee and Hend Rashwan, Aurifer
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