The number of
Syrians in neighbouring Turkey has surpassed 1 million, the Turkish
deputy prime minister has said.
There are more than
20 refugee camps in Turkey near the roughly 500-mile border with
Syria housing more than 220,000 people. But the bulk of people who
have crossed the border are living in Turkish cities, mostly in the
provinces of Hatay, Gaziantep and Sanliurfa. They have taken
advantage of the "open border" policy maintained by Turkey,
a staunch opponent of the regime in Damascus, towards Syrian
refugees.
The Turkish deputy
prime minister, Besir Atalay, told a news conference on Thursday that
the number of Syrians in Turkey had reached 1.05 million since the
uprising against Bashar al-Assad began more than three years ago. It
began with largely peaceful protests but has become increasingly
bloody, with a number of jihadist groups joining the fight to depose
Assad and no end to the civil war in sight. Activists put the number
of people killed at more than 160,000.
The first Syrian
refugees crossed into Turkey in April 2011, prompting the Turkish
government to set up an emergency tent camp for them in southern
Hatay province. In 2012, it set up six container camps, including one
in Kilis, which were meant to offer a better standard of shelter to
incoming refugees. But Turkey has struggled to cope with the sheer
numbers entering the country and conditions in other camps are much
harsher.
On 1 June, the UN
refugee agency put the number of Syrians in Turkey at 760,000.
According to the UN high commissioner for refugees, more than 2.8
million people have fled Syria. There are also more than a million
Syrian refugees in Lebanon, making up a quarter of the tiny country's
population, and 600,000 in Jordan. Iraq (225,000) and Egypt (135,000)
have also taken in significant numbers.
As well as those who
have fled the country, there are about 6.5 million internally
displaced people within Syria and more than 9 million in Syria are
believed to be in need of humanitarian assistance.
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