Number of IDPs in Shahba Camps Surges After Earthquake
ALEPPO, Syria (North Press) – An official at an IDP camp in the Shahba region, north of Aleppo, said Thursday that the number of IDPs in the region’s camps spiked after Monday’s earthquake heavily damaged their homes.
Khalusi Basso, co-chair of Barkhodan IDP camp in Shahba, told North Press that 707 families, comprising 5.219 people, from Aleppo city and its northern villages fled to four camps in Shahba, which are Barkhodan, Sardam, al-Awda, and Shahba.
The northern countryside of Aleppo governorate, also known as Shahba region, houses IDPs of the Kurdish region of Afrin, which was occupied by Turkey in 2018.
The Turkish operation caused the displacement of about 300.000 original Kurdish inhabitants of Afrin, who sheltered in some 40 villages and five camps in the Shahba region.
On Tuesday, about 2.800 people fled to these camps, which are run by the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES), according to Basso.
The earthquake has so far caused 3.583 deaths and 6.342 injuries in Syria, though search and rescue operations continue.
The new IDPs reside with their relatives or in big tents that have recently been installed by the AANES.
The camp’s co-chair said the camp cannot accommodate the large number of newcomers, as it has an insufficient number of tents and lacks aid.
Basso added that the region is already suffering from a severe shortage of basic needs, such as blankets, heating devices and other relief products, owing to the Syrian government blockade on the area.