Turkey (Türkiye)

In the aftermath of the earthquakes, most of the humanitarian work is focused on search-and-rescue activities and responding to the immediate humanitarian needs of the affected populations. With the complex evolution of the crisis and new dynamics emerging, there is also a need to anticipate the development of the situation in the near future. This report provides an overview exposition of what to watch for over the next month, highlighting key variables to monitor that could play a role in the development of the crisis, can contribute to informing the strategic planning, programming, and preparedness of humanitarian responders.

This report gives an overview of the expected impact of the winter season in Syria, neighbouring countries hosting Syrian refugees, and Iraq.

While the physical and humanitarian impacts of explosive weapons, such as mortars, missiles, barrel bombs and IEDs, have been highly visible and documented throughout the conflict in Syria, the unex-ploded remnants of these weapons and landmines have received limited attention but will have long-term implications. In the immediate term, people are killed and maimed, with children making up nearly half of the victims globally. Furthermore, survivors require specialised services that are not available or accessible within Syrian’s public health system, which has been brought to near collapse. Even decades after a conflict has ended, the presence of ERW will negatively affect people’s ability to move freely, return and rebuild their homes, resume their livelihoods and begin to recover. The intensive use of explosive munitions on high-density urban areas and information limi-tations throughout the conflict means that it will take decades of rigor-ous clearance efforts, as ERW are buried among rubble and debris. Beirut and Sarajevo experienced similar ERW contamination in urban areas; the latter city required 8-9 years of clearance efforts, although explosive weapons were used at relatively lower levels compared to Syrian cities. Over time, ERW and landmines will also migrate due to flooding or erosion, particularly in soft, sandy soil, thereby further spreading the contamination risk.

This thematic report outlines the situation of the Palestinian Refugees within official and unofficial camps and settlements in Syria and other countries.

The border policies of Syria’s neighbouring countries have fluctuated regularly due to the security situation, political developments and the increasing number of refugees. This has caused uncertainty among those try-ing to flee and international responders. Some people try-ing to leave have been trapped inside Syria due to border restrictions, and at the border with Turkey this has led to the establishment of several IDP camps.

Given the various restrictions imposed by the governments of neighbouring countries, irregular and unregulated move-ment of refugees across borders is reported to be wide-spread. The legal status and rights of individuals exiting Syria may be compromised when they enter a country via an unofficial crossing.

Movements across borders also involve the smuggling of goods (food, fuel, medicines etc.), weapons and the move-ment of armed personnel.

Widespread information gaps persist in relation to border areas. The limited access of humanitarian organisations to border areas and scarcity of information hampers under-standing of the situation on the ground and the scale of population movements. The proliferation of armed groups in Syria and the fluid nature of territorial control lead to fur-ther ambiguity of the situation and challenges for move-ment of population into safer areas.

Some border crossing points are in remote, hard to reach and insecure areas making it more difficult for those forced to flee by foot to reach a host country.