Skip to main content

Rain batters Syrian refugee camps as winter looms

Displaced Syrians living in refugee camps are dreading winter as they dig their tents out from under the recent flooding.
A Kurdish refugee child from the Syrian town of Kobani walks in the rain in a camp in the southeastern town of Suruc, Sanliurfa province, October 16, 2014. The United States is bombing targets in Kobani for humanitarian purposes to relieve defenders of the Syrian town and give them time to organize against Islamic State militants, a senior U.S. official said on Wednesday. REUTERS/Kai Pfaffenbach (TURKEY  - Tags: MILITARY CONFLICT POLITICS)  - RTR4AFUO
Read in 

ALEPPO, Syria — Ismail used a shovel to dig a watercourse in the mud to keep the water from his tent in the Bab al-Salam refugee camp on the Syrian-Turkish border. But his efforts were in vain as his luggage sank into the ground inside the tent before he could take any of it out.

The heavy rains on Oct. 16 were unexpected. The first rainfall this winter left dozens of tents under water and mud before the displaced could prepare to save their belongings.

Access the Middle East news and analysis you can trust

Join our community of Middle East readers to experience all of Al-Monitor, including 24/7 news, analyses, memos, reports and newsletters.

Subscribe

Only $100 per year.