While some of these homeless people were unable to return to their homes due to the restrictions implemented as precaution measures against coronavirus, some live in the streets continuously. These homeless citizens were placed under quarantine in the Pendik ITO Şehit Ahmet Aslanhan Imam Hatip High School by the Governor of Istanbul; both in a bid to prevent the spread of the virus and to prevent these homeless people from being infected with the virus.
IHH Humanitarian Relief Foundation also extended its donor’s hands of kindness to these homeless people. IHH teams distributed aid consisting of clothing and hygiene packets to these 35 homeless people placed under quarantine in Pendik. We delivered shoes, trousers, pajamas, t-shirts, underwear, coats, jackets, toothbrushes, toothpaste, towels, shampoo, shaving kits, soap, and nail clippers to the homeless citizens.
“Thank you for helping us”
Alaattin Arslan, one of the project beneficiaries, said he has lived on the streets for many years. Arslan, who explained that he was experiencing difficulty in finding food and shelter due to the coronavirus pandemic, added that officials had come to their aid and provided him with the necessary facilities. Offering his gratitude to IHH for their clothing and hygiene aid support, Arslan said, “If people can still do kind, good things for others in such difficult times, then I can look on the bright side of life” and summed up his life in these words:
“I have been living on the streets for many years. I won’t go into detail about the reason or cause, but somehow I ended up in this situation. There are thousands more like me struggling to survive on the streets of Istanbul. In one way or another, we managed to survive. But due to the coronavirus, our living conditions have become even more difficult. At this point, our local authorities and state has helped us and offered us shelter facilities. They have also begun to deliver food to us. Although my quarantine term is complete, I am still staying here. We are trying to get on well with other people. I would like to thank IHH on behalf of all my friends here. A few days ago people came from IHH and asked for our clothing sizes and today they came to help us. They met all our clothing and hygiene needs. What else can I say? Thank you for helping us. If people can still do kind, good things for others in such difficult times, then I can look on the bright side of life.”
Since the first day of the crisis
Since the first day the coronavirus pandemic was reported in Turkey, IHH Humanitarian Relief Foundation has continued to deliver aid and support of our donors to those in need. In addition to cash aid, IHH is also distributing food and hygiene aid to the needy.
