Turkey prepares to receive 1,000 Aleppo refugees

Turkey prepares to receive 1,000 Aleppo refugees
Turkish aid agencies and government bodies prepare to accommodate residents transferred out of Aleppo to Turkey and hundreds more who will find refuge in Syria's borders.
2 min read
19 December, 2016
Thousands of Syrians are still stranded in Aleppo awaiting evacuation [BYEGM]
Turkey has made preparations to acommodate around 1,000 Syrian refugees from East Aleppo in the southern Turkish city of Reyhanli, a statement released Monday said.

It added that officials conducting the Turkish aid effort are also exploring the possibility of setting up camps within Syria's borders.

According to the statement, construction of the 'HAJJ accomodation facility' in Reyhanli, near the Syrian border, was set for completion on 17 December.

This work was carried out while humanitarian aid which was sent to Syria in over 380 International Humanitarian Relief Foundation [IHH] trucks and 1,000 meals were prepared for the new arrivals in Turkey.

Over 200 Turkish Red Crescent trucks also crossed the border into Syria to deliver aid to the 70,000 or so Syrian refugees fleeing Aleppo for other rebel-held areas in the war-torn country.

As of Friday, of the estimated 70,000 so-called evacuees, 7,500 had fled for Idlib, 4,000 were wounded and 800 were released hostages, the statement said.

Residents of Aleppo prepare to leave their homes [BYEGM]


On Monday, thousands were able to leave East Aleppo, raising hopes that many thousands more who are stranded in the former rebel stronghold will also be able to leave.

Aleppo 24 reported that 20 more buses arrived to East Aleppo in the last few minutes, bringing the total to 71.

Meanwhile, the United Nations is preparing for a vote on whether to send international observers to oversee the evacuation process.

Russia had previously threatened to block a Security Council resolution on sending observers to Syria.

However, after hours of closed-door negotiations on Sunday, diplomats reported that a compromise was reached and the international body would vote on the issue on Monday.