UNITED NATIONS, Dec. 8 (Xinhua) — Hundreds of civilians are estimated to have been killed or injured, and at least 370,000 people have been displaced over the week of fighting in northern Syria, UN humanitarians said on Friday.
The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) warned the escalating hostilities in the north, which are expanding to other parts of the country, present a grave threat to the safety of civilians, and damage to infrastructure threatens the delivery of aid. Hundreds of civilians are estimated to have been killed or injured over the past week, although the situation is highly fluid and exact casualty figures are yet to be confirmed, OCHA said. Since the escalation of hostilities in Syria, at least 370,000 people have been displaced, including 100,000 who have been displaced more than once. Most of them are women and children, according to the office. The office said that while exact numbers remain to be confirmed, it had received reports more than 370 civilians were killed in Hama alone. OCHA said public services and critical facilities in Aleppo are either disrupted or non-functional due to shortages of supplies and personnel, which severely impacts the local healthcare system, leading to the suspension of operations at key health facilities in Aleppo and Idlib. Tens of thousands of people have fled to the country’s northeast, the humanitarians said.
The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and non-governmental organizations operating in the northeast estimate that 60,000-80,000 people are newly displaced, including more than 25,000 hosted in collective displaced persons centers. “These centers are filling up as soon as they are assigned,” OCHA said. “With these sites now at capacity, people are sleeping on the streets or in their cars, in sub-zero temperatures.” The United Nations is working with its humanitarian partners in the northeast to assess the needs of families who have arrived at reception centers.
Source: capitalfm
