Many of Syria's nearly three million displaced people face dire winter conditions with a severe snowstorm over the region, the UN said on Monday as it urged the international community do more to protect them.
"No one should live in these conditions," said Mark Cutts, UN deputy regional humanitarian co-ordinator for the Syria crisis, calling the situation "absolutely unacceptable".
"We are extremely concerned" about the 2.8 million displaced people in the region, he said.
The latest storm has piled misery on war-ravaged Syria's northern refugee camps, where most of the displaced are living in tents, many of which are collapsing under the weight of snow.
Other areas are enduring heavy rain or freezing temperatures.
"It's a real disaster zone," Mr Cutts said.
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An aerial view of the snow-covered Al Zaytoun camp near the city of Azaz in the northern countryside of Aleppo, where about 600 tents are set up. All photos: Moawia Atrash / The National -
A child plays with a snowman at Al Zaytoun camp north of Aleppo. -
A tent in Al Zaytoun camp in northern Syria that was destroyed after large amounts of snow fell on it. -
A child stands next to his brother at the entrance to their tent as they look at the snow in the camp. -
Khadija Suleiman, 50, displaced from the southern countryside of Aleppo, has 7 children. She said that before they were displaced, they did not feel winter because they had warm houses and money. But now that they live in tents, their financial situation is difficult and they are afraid of what is to come during the winter. -
A displaced Syrian child walks near his tent and eats the snow that fell on the camp. -
A child and her sister try to cover their tent, which was destroyed by a snowstorm in northern Syria. -
A child makes snowballs and throws them inside the camp. -
Bader Shehadeh, 50, displaced from rural Idlib, has 6 children. He said he has been displaced for 8 years and his family had been moving from one place to another before settling in the camp, where they suffer from the bitter cold. Before the war, he loved when it snowed, but now it is very difficult to deal with. -
An elderly displaced Syrian woman removes snow in front of her tent. -
A displaced child carrying a piece of snow walks next to his sister through the camp in northern Syria. -
Aerial view of tents covered with snow in Al Zaytoun camp in the northern countryside of Aleppo. -
A Syrian woman scrapes snow from her destroyed tent after a snowstorm. -
Faisal, 13, scrapes snow off his tent. He says he loves snow and playing in it with his friends, but the winter has become a tragedy for his family as their tent was destroyed in the storm. In his home village, he used to have fun when it snowed, but now he is sad.
Last year the UN requested more than $4 billion for humanitarian aid in Syria but collected only 45 per cent of the amount, he said.
Because of a lack of equipment, snow was being cleared by hand, Mr Cutts said. He called for tents to be replaced by sturdier shelters.
Idlib region, where the 2.8 million displaced live, is the last Syrian enclave to oppose the regime in Damascus.
Humanitarian aid reaches them mainly through the Turkish-Syrian border under special UN authorisation that means it is free from Damascus interference, in a deal that expires in July.
