UN Says 1,000 Tents In NW Syria Collapsed, Damaged By Snow

Roughly 1,000 tents used by the UN to shelter internally-displaced persons in northwest Syria have collapsed or been badly damaged by snow, an official said on Monday.

Roughly 100,000 people have been affected by the inclement weather, Mark Cutts, the UN's deputy humanitarian coordinator for Syria, told reporters at press conference.

"Many of these people do not have shovels or other equipment to clear the snow so they've been clearing snow from the tents with their bare hands," he said.

"You see pictures of children walking in the snow and on the eyes and their sandals it's really, uh, you know, particularly bad for the elderly people and people with disabilities who are living in these torn and ripped and flimsy tents in these sub-zero temperatures," he added.

Images from the region captured by Anadolu Agency depict makeshift tent camps badly damaged by snow amid frigid temperatures as civilians attempt to brave the harsh winter conditions.

Many camps in Idlib along the frontier between Turkiye and Syria have been flooded, further compounding hardships for hundreds of families.

Syria has been ravaged by conflict since early 2011 when the Bashar al-Assad regime cracked down on pro-democracy protesters. -