UK must do more to help Syria - even if that means conceding to Putin, says charity adviser

The UK is not doing enough to save the sick and injured in besieged Syria and should be prepared to concede some political ground to Russia in order to do so, says a leading charity figure.

Hamish de Bretton-Gordon, who is involved in the negotiations to evacuate sick children from besieged Syria, has called on the UK prime minister and foreign secretary to do more to safeguard the lives of civilians and medics.

Last week, the government permitted Red Cross teams to evacuate 29 critically-ill patients from the Syrian rebel-held enclave of Eastern Ghouta, but many are dying while stuck on the waiting list to receive treatment. A significant number of the hundreds of people in need of help are children.

“The West has let these children down,” says Mr de Bretton-Gordon, a director of Doctors Under Fire and an adviser to the Union of Medical Care and Relief Organisations (UOSSM), which operates in Eastern Ghouta.

Speaking to The National, Mr de Bretton-Gordon says that UK leader Theresa May and foreign secretary Boris Johnson are not doing enough to help those in need in Syria considering Britain’s resources and diplomatic weight.

“I call upon the Prime Minister and Foreign Secretary to be bold and seize the initiative in Syria to stop the killing and enable the millions who have suffered so much [to see a] glimmer of hope for a better future,” he says.