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Over a thousand Syrian refugees live in an unofficial camp in unused agricultural fields in Lebanon around 15 kilometers from the border of Syria.
Being unofficial, there is no infrastructure. There is no running water, electricity, or sewage.
Two consecutive severe winter storms have just hit Lebanon, Syria, Jordan and Iraq dumping heavy rain on Marej, turning it into a field of mud. At night temperatures can go below freezing.
In Lebanon, temperatures plummeted as the country was hit on Tuesday by a winter storm, expected to continue until Thursday. Temperatures dropped in some areas to -1 Celsius.
Rainfall in Lebanon over the past two months has been markedly greater than during the same period last year. Over 1 million Syrian refugees in Lebanon are scattered across 1,700 localities across the country.
For refugees, this is the fourth winter away from their homes since the crisis started in Syria. In the Kurdistan region of northern Iraq, winter has already arrived in Dohuk governorate.
By December, temperatures can range from +5 degrees Celsius to minus -16 degrees Celsius in the mountains. Jordan also faced its first rainstorm this week with hundreds of thousands of refugees still living in the Zaatari and Al Azraq refugee camps.
Over 3.2 million Syrians have registered, or are awaiting registration, with the UN Refugee agency (UNHCR) in Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey. WFP assists over 2 million of the most vulnerable refugees with food vouchers.
WFP often uses vouchers to provide assistance where markets are functioning but people cannot afford to buy food. It provides people with more choice and they can buy fresh food such as fruit, vegetables and milk that are not normally included in conventional food rations.
To date, through the voucher programme, WFP has injected close to US$250 million into the local economies of neighbouring countries.
WFP requires US$35 million each week to feed those left hungry by the war in Syria and needs an immediate US$64 million to meet the urgent food needs of Syrian refugees in neighbouring countries during the month of December.
Overall, the UN food agency needs US$353 million for its Syria response over the next three months, including US$92 million for its work inside Syria and US$261 million to support refugees in neighboring countries.
SHOTLIST:
25 NOVEMBER 2014, MAREJ SETTLEMENT, BEKAA, LEBANON
Exterior, Marej settlement
Various shots, settlement
Children playing
Girl's bare feet walking on mud
Child sleeping at door's entrance
Mother waking up her son
Fadia and Fatmeh and their families standing on mud
Girl's feet walking on mud on her way to an informal school
Children mudded feet
Children in cold weather
Boy running to his tent
Children' s bare feet
Tilt up, children standing at the door
Various shots, Assia and her tent mates preparing cooking potatoes and bread
SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Fatmeh, Syrian refugee:
"Oh God, we are freezing to death. I don't have any blankets. A neighbor gave me a piece of foam for my baby to sleep on and another one on which 3 children sleep."
SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Assia, Syrian refugee:
"These tents don't keep us warm. Even when lit the heaters don't keep us warm. And as you can see, there is mud. I have been in Lebanon for one year. I survive only thanks to the UN food vouchers. I don't get anything else."
SOUNDBITE (English) Abeer Etefa, WFP Spokesperson:
"Many of the refugees are not prepared for this winter. They are living in informal settlements like this one. Plastic sheeting; they are taking cover; they are trying to burn whatever they can so that they have fire at night to warm their kids. It's a very difficult situation. The World Food Programme is providing food assistance through vouchers to refugees in all neighboring countries, but is also facing a difficult time with funding."
DURATION: 02:27
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