The town of Salqin, located on the Syrian-Turkish border, has received over 200,000 displaced people fleeing the fighting and shelling in the city of Idleb and its countryside last month.
Some of the displaced people have rented houses in the town and its countryside, while others were forced to live in random tents in farmland, or in camps erected by the town's local council. Those inside the camps are suffering from the scarcity of the humanitarian assistance and the lack of basic services.
Abu Omar lives in as-Saffafah, one of the camps on the outskirts of Salqin. He explained that each tent is shared by three families. Abu Omar says he has called on humanitarian organizations to provide food and basic needs to the camp, while Mohammad Alaa Jamous, who lives in Dalbia camp, said the humanitarian situation in the camp is deplorable.
Head of Salqin’s Relief Office Ahmed Binnishi said the number of displaced people from Idleb and Jisr al-Shughour who now live in Salqin is around 250,000, forcing further pressure on the city which previously received around 100,000 people. Binnishi stressed that the aid they provide does not respond to the needs of the displaced people.
For over a month, Idleb province has witnessed fierce battles between regime and Syrian opposition forces, where the opposition advanced to seize to the cities of Idleb and Jisr al-Shughour, in addition to a number of regime locations and camps in the region. The advance resulted in intensified regime air strikes on the liberated areas, massacres against civilians, and massive destruction of private property.
Translated and edited by The Syrian Observer
