At around dawn on Wednesday, March 29, 2023, severe gale-force winds hit multiple areas in northwestern Syria. The windstorm uprooted dozens of tents in around 60 internally displaced persons (IDPs) camps, shelter centers, and irregular encampments recently established to house the victims of last month’s devastating earthquake in the suburbs of Aleppo and Idlib governorate. The windstorm led to the death of a in al-Hawija Camp in western Ma’aret Misreen in the northern suburbs of Idlib, as well as. causing material damage to the property of thousands of camp residents.
The Syrian Network for Human Rights (SNHR) also notes that the windstorm caused great damages to the villages and areas affected, and resulted in the death of a man in Kourin town in Idlib suburbs, in addition to many civilian injuries.
SNHR urges international relief organizations, including the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) to swiftly respond to the critical basic needs of camps and supply camps’ administration by supplying additional tents for such emergencies. SNHR also reiterates our condemnation of Russia’s abusive misuse of its veto powers to block the entry of cross-border aid via the al-Salama Crossing on the Syrian-Turkish borders, which has disrupted the flow of humanitarian assistance.
