Floods, Cold Threaten Palestinian Refugees in Syiria

Damascus, MINA – With increasing rainfall and dropping temperatures to freezing point, Palestinian refugees in the Deir Ballut camp, northern Syria, will be threatened by a season of extreme flooding and cold.

The biggest difficulty is the submergence of the camp tents as a result of the overflow of floods from the Afrin River in northern Syria. The left Deir Ballut camp isolated from its surroundings.

Abu Zeid, one of the refugees, told Quds Press on Thursday, “I was one of those whose tents completely submerged, water got into the tent and soaked all our supplies.”

The Afrin River has been overflowing many times, even though the refugees have repaired bridges and installed embankments on both river banks. However, the overflow of water each rainy season for two years has made the refugees feel anxious.

“The winter here is very difficult, because every year the camps in northern Syria are hit by waves of heavy rain, tents sink or collapse repeatedly due to winds,” said Ahmed Al Hussein, a charity official at the Palestine Relief and Development Authority’s work office, respond to the most difficult humanitarian situations refugees experience.

Al Hussein added that the Palestinian refugees, including the Syrian refugees themselves in the northern Syrian camp, are faced with daily tragedies that emerge every winter.

“There are no more shelters to warm them, no sufficient food, not even funding to match the winter load. Not to mention the impact of the disease caused by these conditions, “he said.

Meanwhile, the Palestinian Authority for Broadcasting and Development for Refugees has in advance launched several projects and campaigns urging what support and assistance is possible for Palestinian and Syrian refugees.

The refugees are looking forward to a response from charitable and humanitarian associations and organizations, ranging from Palestine itself, Turkey, Europe and charities from the Gulf countries.

The authorities added that since the beginning of 2021, several types of assistance had been provided to the refugee camps, including: 500 baskets of groceries, 1,000 food packages, 150 packages of beef and 150 tents with blankets, mattresses and mats, in addition to that’s 50 tons of firewood and 25 thousand packages of bread.

He pointed out that more than 1,500 children have benefited from the winter clothing campaign, in addition to cash transfers that have benefited nearly 300 families in need. But that still doesn’t reach the 40,000,000 refugee families in total in the camp.

In the coming period, mosques and schools will be built, and wells are dug. (T/RE1)

Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)