A group of 21 international aid agencies criticised the UN Security Council for failing to implement its resolutions aimed at improving the humanitarian situation in Syria, calling 2014 “the worst year” of the crisis, a report said Thursday.

The report found that despite three resolutions adopted by the council in 2014 that demanded an end to violence against civilians and access to humanitarian aid, the situation in Syria has continued to escalate.

In 2014, more than 76,000 people were killed, bringing to 220,000 the total number of deaths since the conflict began four years ago. The number of people living in hard-to-reach areas increased to 4.8 million people last year from 2.3 million in 2013.

The report also points out that funding for humanitarian aid in Syria and the surrounding countries that bear that brunt of 3.8 million Syrian refugees stood at 57 per cent in 2014 compared to 71 per cent funded in the previous year.

“The bitter reality is that the Security Council has failed to implement its resolutions,” said Jan Egeland, secretary general of the Norwegian Refugee Council.

“Last year was the darkest year yet in this horrific war. Parties to the conflict have acted with impunity and ignored the Security Council’s demands.”

Organizations among the signatories of the report include Oxfam, Save the Children, World Vision International and Syria Relief Network. The Syrian conflict began with nationwide protests against President Bashar al-Assad on March 15, 2011. More than 220,000 people have been killed, and 12 million people are now in need of humanitarian assistance. SAPA