Question to the Department for International Development:

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what information her Department holds on the availability of water in and around the Damascus area.

Ongoing fighting and damage to water facilities has left up to 5.5 million people in and around Damascus without mains water supplies since 22 December. Clean water is currently available through 120 wells in and around Damascus that have been rehabilitated by UNICEF. These provide about one third of the city's daily water needs. In addition, UNICEF and the UN Relief and Works Agency are delivering water by truck into Damascus from other sources. Many residents in the city are buying water from private vendors, where prices and water quality are unregulated.