During the monthly meeting, which was attended by humanitarian aid representatives from Hatay, İskenderun, Kilis, Gaziantep, Şanlıurfa and Mardin, issues such as humanitarian aid efforts in Syria, problems faced by Syrian refugees in Turkey, expectations from civil society organizations and public institutions were discussed.

At the meeting, IHH’s Member of Executive Board Osman Atalay talked about the problems of the refugees living on the Turkish-Syrian border.

Atalay said governors’ offices and municipalities need to bring up effective solutions to the refugees’ problems, adding: “Our country which has so far hosted Bosnian, Chechen, Kosovar and Iraqi refugees, is having coordination problems because this is the first time that a large number of people as many as 500,000 have taken refuge in the country. We need to strengthen our relations with civil society organizations and public institutions thanks to a sustainable and definite aid plan. We need to produce solutions to the problems of refugees concerning nutrition, healthcare and education through regular projects.”

Facts about Syrian refugees living in Turkey and Syria according to figures given by Atalay;

-197,000 of the refugees in Turkey live in tents while 300,000 refugees are giving a life struggle in houses they rented.

-Problems of the refugees concerning nutrition, healthcare and education have not been resolved. They try to subsist on aid provided by civil society organizations.

-The number of Syrian refugees in Kilis province has reached 40,000. The main problem of the people living in houses is lack of access to hospital and medical services.

-Medical and educational problems of the refugees living in houses in Mardin are very serious.

-70,000 Syrians live in tent cities in Şanlıurfa while 30,000 people live in houses. Lack of education is the main problem for those living in houses.

-In Gaziantep, 60,000 Syrians live in houses. Their need for food, education and healthcare is met by non-governmental organizations.

-There is a significant fall in the amount of aid made for Syria and 7 billion Syrians face hunger.

-Around 60,000 people live without access to toilets, bathrooms and clean water in tents in Turkey’s border provinces.

-With the rise of temperatures, epidemics, pediculosis and scab cases have begun to be seen among children.