The war in Syria has caused a grave humanitarian crisis. Chemical weapons and bombs were used without restraint, and ancient cities were reduced to rubble. More than 600,000 people have lost their lives, and over 6.1 million have sought refuge in other countries. Today, 13.1 million people still need humanitarian aid.
Since the war began, we have carried out our work in Syria through 11 coordination centers. More than 100,000 people live in the 161 settlements we have built, from tent camps and container cities to concrete block homes. Through the bakeries and kitchens we support, we deliver meals to displaced families. In 35 free clothing stores, families choose the clothes they need. The 36 hospitals and 46 health centers we support provide medical care, and students continue their education at 2 universities and 46 schools. At the Education Village we built in Reyhanlı, with room for 1,000 residents, orphans prepare for a new life in safety. Every month, more than 27,000 orphaned children receive support.
- Where does IHH coordinate its Syria work from?
We carry out our Syria work through 14 centers and offices with a combined 200,000 square meters of open space and 95,000 square meters of indoor space. Our coordination and logistics centers in Reyhanlı, Kilis, Şanlıurfa, Bab al-Hawa and Bab al-Salameh oversee our offices in Yayladağı, al-Bab, Jabal al-Turkman, Jarablus and Afrin. Alongside bakeries, soup kitchens and warehouses, these centers coordinate the delivery of aid and host diplomatic and international meetings.
Aid IHH Delivered to Syrians in Need Between 2011 and 2022
270 million loaves of bread
27 million ready meals and canned goods
267,000 tonnes of food and 32,500 tonnes of heating fuel
1.2 million liters of fuel
25.2 million items of clothing
2.3 million kitchen items
7 million books and stationery items
15 million units of medicine, medical supplies and equipment
4.9 million hygiene items
You can read the IHH Syria Activity Report by clicking here.
Let’s not leave the families who are waiting for us alone in the freezing cold.
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Humanitarian Diplomacy in Syria
Our work in Syria also extends to humanitarian diplomacy. In the last days of 2016, civilians trapped in Aleppo were facing a massacre. The Assad regime and its backers had placed the city under siege and were blocking even humanitarian aid from entering. IHH called for and organized the “Open the Way to Aleppo” convoy to open a humanitarian corridor into the besieged city, and more than 5,000 vehicles and 40,000 people joined it. Through the humanitarian diplomacy of IHH, the United Nations and other partners, alongside Türkiye’s own initiatives, 45,000 people were evacuated to safe areas.
Throughout the convoy’s journey, 1,208 truckloads of aid were prepared across Türkiye for the oppressed people of Aleppo. Together with the emergency supplies the participants brought with them, this aid reached evacuated families quickly through hundreds of our volunteers. The supplies delivered to the tent camps IHH had newly built included basic food, cleaning products, winter clothes and shoes, blankets and tents.
The convoy drew wide attention around the world and was also on the United Nations’ agenda. Speaking about the ceasefire and evacuations in Syria, Jan Egeland, advisor to UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura, said, “Turkish civil society organizations, IHH foremost among them, are doing very, very important work in this evacuation operation. IHH has done great things.”
In 2013, IHH also played an active role in the release of 2,130 Syrian civilians held by the regime in exchange for 48 Iranian nationals. In 2015, it helped make possible the mutual exchange of 464 wounded people from al-Fu’ah and Zabadani.