Kuwait Emir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmed Al-Sabah (right) walks with King Abdullah of Jordan at the opening of the International Humanitarian Pledging Conference for Syria on the outskirts of Kuwait City, Wednesday. — Reuters KUWAIT CITY — Gulf nations answered UN calls to boost humanitarian aid for Syria with $900 million in pledges Wednesday even as more refugees poured into neighboring Jordan and its leader warned resources were strained to the limit. The Gulf promises at a donors' conference hosted by Kuwait — added to earlier relief fund increases by the US and European Union — exceed the UN target of $1.5 billion in immediate aid. But the funds are only expected to cover the coming months, highlighting the massive burden to cope with needs from Syria's civil war and its spillover in the region. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said in closing remarks to the one-day conference: “I am pleased to announce that we have exceeded our target” of $1.5 billion. About $1 billion is earmarked for Syria's neighbors hosting refugees and $500 million for humanitarian aid to Syrians displaced inside the country. The $500 million would be channelled through UN partner agencies in Syria and the entire aid pledge would cover the next six months, Ban said. Earlier, a Gulf official said Saudi Arabia pledged $300 million while Kuwait and the UAE each pledged a similar amount. Host Kuwait was first to make a pledge. “Due to the great sufferings of the Syrian people and to help ensure the success of the conference, I announce the Kuwaiti donation of $300 million for the Syrian people,” Kuwait Emir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah said as he opened the one-day conference. Sheikh Sabah said that “horrifying reports” from Syria are a “cause for concern over the security of Syria, its future ... and over the security and future of the region.” Bahrain's Crown Prince Salman Bin Hamad Al-Khalifa said his kingdom would offer $20 million while the German Foreign Ministry pledged in a statement around 10 million euros ($13.5 million). The pledges also will likely face close scrutiny on how quickly the money will reach over-stretched aid groups directed by the UN and other agencies. Officials in Egypt and elsewhere have complained that many generous international offers for help after the Arab Spring upheavals have not yet materialized. Ban opened the gathering by calling for an end to the fighting “in the name of humanity,” yet noted that the fighting shows no signs of easing and crises such as the refugee exodus to places such as Turkey and Jordan could intensify. Jordan's economic council said the country was already near the breaking point. The kingdom has spent more than $833 billion on aid for refugees — accounting for nearly half the estimated 700,000 people who have fled Syria — and that it was unable to sustain a financial burden that has so far siphoned off about 3 percent of its GDP. Some UN officials say the refugee figures could approach a million later this year if the conflict does not ease. Speaking at the UN-led gathering in Kuwait, Jordan's King Abdullah said sheltering and assisting the refugee wave is above the country's “capacity and potential.” “We have reached the end of the line. We have exhausted our resources,” he said. Ban described the situation in Syria as “catastrophic and getting worse by the day.” He listed a “cascading catalog of horrors” facing Syrians, including shortages of food and medicine. “The use of heavy weapons in residential areas has destroyed whole communities and neighborhoods,” Ban told delegates. — Agencies
