Red Cross chief: Benefits from aid for Syria require peace

The head of the Red Cross and Red Crescent is renewing his appeal for Syria's warring sides to stop fighting, saying humanitarian benefits from funds raised at an upcoming aid conference will only go as far as peace and stability will allow.
Elhadj As Sy, secretary-general of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, spoke to The Associated Press after returning from a third trip to Syria, his first since last year.
A major conference in Brussels next week will aim to plan efforts to help the country rebuild once there is an end to the civil war, now in its seventh year.

IFRC said today that Sy visited Homs and Damascus during the two-day visit. He met with Foreign Minister Walid Moallem in the capital.