Stories
April 24, 2026 • 4 min read
After years of conflict and displacement, families are returning to Idleb Governorate to rebuild their lives amid widespread destruction. Through cash assistance funded by the Syria Cross-border Humanitarian Fund, GOAL is supporting vulnerable households to meet their most urgent needs, while restoring dignity and hope. For returnees like Faisal and Huriya, this assistance is more than financial support; it is a vital lifeline helping families regain stability and envision a future after years of hardship.
The End of Conflict
In Syria, years of conflict have left many towns in Idleb Governorate in ruins, with entire villages largely abandoned. Towns were heavily bombarded, infrastructure collapsed, and families fled violence and instability as frontlines shifted across the area. Now that the conflict has ended in 2024, families have begun returning, but life remains extremely difficult due to widespread destruction and rising living costs.
Cash Assistance Supports Families
Through the project “Needs Support for Returnees and Host Communities in Areas of Origin: Multi-purpose Cash Assistance and WASH Rehabilitation,” funded by the Syria Cross-border Humanitarian Fund (SCHF), a pooled fund managed by the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), GOAL has provided multi-purpose cash assistance (MPCA) to more than 1000 vulnerable households. Cash assistance enables families to meet their most urgent needs, including food, medicine, and heating materials, while supporting basic home repairs and helping them regain a minimum level of stability after years of displacement and hardship.
Targeting Vulnerable Households
Beneficiaries were chosen by the selection team according to a set of vulnerability-based criteria , including households headed by women, elderly individuals, persons with severe disabilities, families with children, and those living in inadequate conditions such as camps or temporary shelters. Selected households were then verified and registered, with GOAL distribution teams who provided cash assistance in seven instalments to ensure sustained support.
Faisal Al-Hamoud, 67, and Hassan Souda, team leader in GOAL’s Food Security Programme, at a distribution point in Almaouzrah village, Idleb Governorate.
Faisal Al-Hamoud’s Story
In Jabal al-Zawiya, Idleb Governorate, 67-year-old Faisal Al-Hamoud lives with his extended family spanning three generations. Faisal suffers from severe vision impairment, and his wife is unable to walk, placing significant strain on the family. Like many others in the community , they rely heavily on support from their children, who face similar hardships . Together, they struggle to meet even their most basic needs including food, water, and electricity. Access to education and healthcare services are almost non-existent.
Describing daily life in the community, Faisal says : “The situation in the village today is tragic. There is no medical facility at all, not even a simple clinic providing basic services. Water is constantly cut off, electricity is completely absent, and there is no bakery in the village.”
Huriya Abdul Hamid’s Story
Huriya Abdul Hamid, 68, from Al-Sha’eera village in Jabal al-Zawiya, has faced years of hardship. Widowed 21 years ago, she raised 11 children on her own. Today, she lives with some of her children and grandchildren under difficult conditions similar to those faced by others in the community. Rising food prices and the high cost of heating make winter especially challenging.
Huriya, 68, and her son Mohamad, 48, at a distribution point in Shagoreet village, Idleb Governorate. She currently lives with her son Mohamad, his wife, and their three daughters, as well as three of her grandchildren.
After receiving assistance from GOAL, Huriya shared: “I received cash assistance from GOAL. I will use it to buy school supplies for my grandchildren and essential food items such as oil, ghee, rice, and lentils.”
Like many others, Huriya sees this support as a vital lifeline: “After more than ten years of displacement, we have no choice but to remain resilient. This is our village, and we will try to stay no matter the circumstances. GOAL’s assistance has brought us some stability and given us hope that tomorrow may be better, God willing.”
GOAL Support
According to Hassan Souda, 40, GOAL Food Security team leader, the project ensures that assistance is delivered in an organised and equitable manner to families facing acute economic hardship.
With each distribution, households are able to prioritise their most urgent needs, particularly during economic pressures and seasonal hardship. The assistance contributes to stabilising daily living conditions.
A landscape view of Jabal al-Zawiya in Idlib governorate, where families are returning after years of displacement to rebuild their lives amid destruction.
Through the support provided by SCHF, GOAL has helped restore hope and dignity to over 1,000 families. Cash assistance has enabled households to access food, medicine, heating and repair their homes. This has allowed them to rebuild a basic level of stability after years of displacement.
Supporting this work is not just about numbers; it is about preserving the lives and dignity of families who have endured years of crisis.
About EU Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid
The European Union and its Member States are among the world’s leading donors of humanitarian aid, providing lifesaving relief to millions affected by conflict and disaster worldwide. The EU’s humanitarian assistance is delivered through its Directorate-General for European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (DG ECHO) based on needs, impartiality, and respect for human dignity.
