‘WORRISOME DEVELOPMENT’

Report: White House Cuts Off Funding for Syria’s White Helmets

Trump admin was reportedly required to approve further funding by April 15 deadline.

The Trump administration has reportedly halted funding for Syria’s White Helmets, a humanitarian group credited with saving countless lives in the country’s seven-year civil war. Officials from the group, also known as the Syrian Civil Defense, told CBS News they were not given any formal notice by the State Department that funding had been stopped. But volunteers on the ground say funding hasn’t come through for weeks. “This is a very worrisome development. Ultimately, this will negatively impact the humanitarian workers’ ability to save lives,” one official from the group was quoted as saying. An internal State Department document cited by CBS News reportedly said the Trump administration was required to approve further funding for the group by April 15 or “shut-down procedures” would begin. Trump has signaled a desire to roll back U.S. involvement in Syria in recent weeks, having called on other nations to take “greater responsibility” in the region so that U.S. troops can be pulled out.