Obama approves new humanitarian aid to Syria $ 12 million

The U.S. President, Barack Obama, today approved a new humanitarian aid to Syria 12 million dollars (9.8 million) to mitigate what he called "the horrible atrocities" of the regime of Bashar al-Assad.

The new aid amounts to 76 million dollars (about 62.5 million) the total amount given by the United States in humanitarian aid to Syria since the conflict began 16 months ago, according to a White House statement.

The new funding will be delivered to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, the International Red Cross, UNICEF and other organizations that are assisting the civilian population in Syria.

The statement stresses that, after more than a year of conflict, the situation is "dire need and rapidly deteriorating."

Washington praises the other hand "generosity" of countries like Turkey, Jordan, Lebanon and Iraq in welcoming and assisting refugees "fleeing the horrible atrocities perpetrated by the regime of Bashar al-Assad," and urges all international community to send humanitarian aid.