A large number of Syrian refugees are heading toward Europe through Turkish border towns, following the announcement by Turkish officials that the country can no longer afford to shoulder the burden of another refugee wave emanating from Syria’s Idlib province.
The new development comes in the backdrop of the killing of 33 Turkish soldiers by Russian-backed Syrian regime air strikes in Idlib on Thursday evening.
AK Party spokesman Omer Celik said Turkey cannot no longer being able to hold refugees with in this circumstances.
With Assad regime’s relentless bombing on Idlib’s civilian areas, a large number of Syrian refugees have trickled into Turkish border towns, and one contingent that arrived in Edirne last night is now heading toward the Greek border.
Turkey has been hosting more than 3.7 million migrants since the start of the Syrian civil war in 2011, which makes it the top refugee hosting country in the world.
Relentless bombings and ground assaults carried by Russia-backed Assad regime, hitting civilian areas of Idlib in frequent intervals, has created one of the worst humanitarian catastrophes in the 21th century.
Twenty-two humanitarian aid organisations representing thousands of humanitarian volunteers operating in northwestern Syria have condemned the international “numbness” regarding the unfolding humanitarian catastrophe in Idlib.
As Russia and Assad regime repeatedly reneged on ceasefire deals, the United Nations and western powers watched the bloodletting without making any efforts to bring it to an end. In May 2019, the UN chief Antionio Guterres’ close aide, Ursula Mueller, blasted the security council for lack of action.
“Can’t this Council take any concrete action when attacks on schools and hospitals have become a war tactic that no longer sparks outrage?” Mueller asked the council.
Turkey has criticised EU on several occassions, holding them accountable for not doing enough in helping Turkey tackling the refugee crisis.
More than 60 percent of those recently displaced are children and the trauma will be with them for decades to come.
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