GENEVA, Rabi'II 26, 1438, January 24, 2017, SPA -- The United Nations appealed on Tuesday for $4.63 billion in fresh funding to help Syrian refugees and host communities in neighbouring countries, a statement said, according to Reuters. The appeal, launched at a Helsinki conference hosted by Finland, is in addition to $3.4 billion that the world body estimates is required to address the humanitarian needs of 13.5 million people within Syria this year. "Funding for Syria remains insufficient to respond to what remains one of the worst humanitarian crises in the world today," the U.N. statement said. --SPA 16:05 LOCAL TIME 13:05 GMT www.spa.gov.sa/w318699