(Zaman Al Wasl)- With the approach of winter, a quarter of a million displaced people continue to suffer from a lack of basic supplies, shelter and blankets in the opposition-held areas in northern Aleppo province.
Displaced people in the region are waiting for the organizations and camp administrations to start preparing for the winter months by providing insulators and heating devices that will enable them to withstand the difficult months ahead. For many displaced persons, this wait will be longer given the increase in the number of people arriving to the camps fleeing the fighting in the Syrian Jizera area.
Refugee camp managers and organizations operating in the region said none of them have started preparing for the coming winter, nor are there any plans in the short term to prepare.
Hussein Daraj, manager of the Dahiyet Sajo camp [Sajo Suburb Camp] told Zaman al-Wasl, “So far there are no preparations to help the displaced people to cope with the winter, and the organizations have nothing to offer the camps in the foreseeable future.”
Daraj said the camps in the area are mostly formed of tents that need replacing or insulation and waterproofing as an emergency solution to face the rain and cold.
Daraj, who also serves as the deputy director of the General Administration for Camps, confirmed that the organizations operating in the area did not offer nor do they plan to provide heating materials for around 200,000 displaced persons. He explained that the warehouses in all the camps are empty and organizations’ work is limited to providing cleaning services, water and bread.
Around 120,000 people are distributed in 14 regular camps, and about 80,000 displaced persons are living in 20 unorganized settlements in the region. According to Daraj, the camp administrations do not possess the financial means necessary to cover the needs of the camp residents during winter.
In its turn, Mohamed Kilani, the manager of the Bab al-Salam camp estimated that there are around 250,000 displaced people in the region distributed between organized and unorganized camps in the northern countryside of Aleppo.
Kilani revealed to Zaman al-Wasl that none of these camps are ready for winter. He described the camp residents as being weak in body, the camp tents as damaged and the blankets provided as worn out. The camp sponsors only realize the need after the crisis hits and some displaced person die from the cold, starvation, or due to the hardship they have experienced in recent years, he added.
Camps of Jarablus organization confirmed in an email response that there are no initiatives to prepare for winter in the camps in the Jarablus area although the area is a destination for many of those fleeing the fighting in the Syrian Jizera area. The organization mentioned that “The relief organizations have stopped working due to a lack of approval from AFAD [Republic of Turkey Prime Ministry Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency].”
Zaman Al Wasl
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