An affiliate of al Qaeda in Syria has sent a stark warning to aid workers from the West who try to enter the chaotic country: You risk kidnapping or killing.
The directive came from the Islamic State of Iraq and Al-Sham, or ISIS, a unit of al Qaeda on the ground in Syria. CBS said the message is a clear warning to aid workers from the United States to watch their backs while in the country.
A spokesperson for the State Department confirmed that “some of our partners” have received the warning and that aid and emergency responders from the West were indeed in danger, CBS reported. So far, though, the threat is “not yet impacting our programs given the breadth and depth of local staff and partners we have on the ground,” the spokesperson said in the CBS report.
The United States by far is the largest donor to Syrian refugees. America has sent more than a billion dollars so far in the two years that nation has been in crisis mode, with violence that has pit rebel forces against President Bashar Assad’s military.
• Cheryl K. Chumley can be reached at cchumley@washingtontimes.com.
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