Five international UN Volunteers work closely with local customs officials in Gaziantep, Turkey, to conduct visual and physical inspections of United Nations cargos going into Syria.
Since cross-border operations started in July 2014, aid materials sent by UN organizations arrive at UN bases in Turkey, where materials are moved from Turkish international road transports (TIRs) to Syrian TIRs.
Later, TIRs cross into Syria as aid convoys under the supervision of the UN. The aid is then distributed by the UN's local partners in Syria. The whole operation is coordinated by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Assistance (OCHA).
The UN Volunteer Associate Monitoring Officers serving within the UN Monitoring Mechanism (UNMM) are responsible for the essential task of making sure that the trucks going into Syria are carrying humanitarian supplies and nothing else.
They compare aid cargos with consignments, liaise with the logistics officers of UN agencies and implementing partners, and actively seek information of United Nations-led cross-border movements.