Syrian Kurds appeal for aid as international NGOs evacuate Rojava
In a statement released on Tuesday afternoon, officials appealed for assistance in an effort to “avoid exacerbating the humanitarian crisis caused by the barbaric Turkish attack”.
Local schools are now hosting families displaced from the border towns of Tal Abyad, Ras al-Ain, and surrounding villages as camps reach full capacity. Over 275,000 have been displaced since the start of the Turkish incursion, 70,000 of whom are children, according to the administration, the Syrian Democratic Council.
According to International Organization for Migration (IOM) reports, approximately 180 families have arrived in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq in the past two days.
Per @IOMIraq (who manages the emergency tracking tool, 182 people have crossed from #Syria through the informal Sahela border crossing the last two days. Most appear to come from #Qamishli and #RasAlAin, and have been transferred to a camp in KRI. [Source: IOM, 14 Oct 2019, DTM]
— OCHA Iraq (@OCHAIraq) October 15, 2019
The Kurdish Red Crescent (KRC), a local charity, said it is running low on supplies. In a statement published to Facebook on Sunday, it lamented the “extremely limited support” for internally displaced persons (IDPs) and accused the Turkish government of breaking international law in obstructing the delivery of aid to local civilians.
KRC said many international aid organizations made the decision to leave northern Syria as fighting wages between the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and Turkish-backed militias, a deal was reached between the SDF and Damascus that will see regime forces move to protect the borders, and the “unpredictable” actions of Turkey.
The Kurdish charity is now reportedly the only aid organization providing emergency services in northern Syria and faces severe difficulties following the withdrawal of “essential expat staff” over the past two days.
Several NGO’s have gone public with their decision to withdraw from the area, citing security concerns and logistical difficulties arising from heavy fighting across the region.
Some United Nations agencies are still operating. UNICEF said on Monday it was stepping in to deliver water to over eight locations after other agencies suspended their activities. In the past ten days, the organization had delivered 95,000 liters to collective shelters across the northeast.
In a statement to CPH Post, DanChurch Aid international director Jonas Nøddekær confirmed the total halt of their activities in northern Syria because of the “security situation in the country.” In a similar move, Mercy Corps has suspended its operations due to the ongoing conflict and “constantly changing armed actors,” which has left staff unable to “effectively operate” in the region.
Active in northeast Syria since 2014, Mercy Corps’ Deputy Country Director for Syria Made Ferguson described the ongoing situation as a “nightmare scenario,” detailing the inability of local and international actors to reach those in need, while Middle East Regional Director Michael Bowers predicted that the humanitarian situation will “dramatically worsen” as a result.
The Kurdistan Region-based Barzani Charity Foundation has announced it is sending a shipment of aid to northern Syria. The foundation announced in a press conference at the border between Syria and the Kurdistan Region on Tuesday that they have started sending humanitarian aid to 5,000 families in the cities of Tel Tamr and Hasaka.