Turkey announces building 60,000 houses in northern Syria
IDLIB, Syria (North Press) – Turkey announced on Wednesday that the number of houses built in 259 points in northern Syria has reached about 60,000 prefabricated houses.
This came in a statement released by Turkish Minister of Interior Suleiman Soylu in the Turkish capital Ankara to introduce the project of 100,000 brick houses in Idlib.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced a project of a safe zone on May 3, claiming to settle one million Syrian refugees in the areas controlled by Turkey and the Turkish-backed armed Syrian opposition Factions (also known as the Syrian National Army, SNA) in northern Syria.
The term safe zone also known as buffer zone was first used in 2019. It is an area 30-35 km (19-22 miles) deep into Syrian territory that Turkey claimed to establish aiming at settling Syrian refugees who hail from other Syrian regions in an area along its southern border with Syria, as well as to keep it free from the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which it regards as terrorists.
Soylu said, “45.903 of these homes were built in Idlib region, and about 14.000 were built in the countryside of Aleppo and Afrin region.”
Soylu stressed that some local and international organizations are supporting and responsible for the construction.
“So far, the number of families residing in these houses has reached 51.427,” he said.
On May, Soylu revealed his country’s intention to build about 250,000 homes in northern Syria, as part of a plan to return Syrian refugees.
Erdogan also said, “we are preparing a new project for the voluntary return of one million Syrian brothers who are in our country as guests.”
On April 22, the Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu claimed that his country is working on “a safe and dignified return for the Syrian refugees.”