Mahmoud Hamza

On July 12, the UN Security Council extended the Syrian cross-border aid mechanism for six months. But with the future still uncertain, alternatives to in-kind aid are being used in some northwestern Syrian camps—with mixed results. 

In northwestern Syria, financial hardship, despair and a shortage of psychological specialists contributes to mental health crises. And in cases of suicide, family members of the victims often grapple with social stigma.

Since 2020, the Damascus government has held public auctions for land owned by displaced people. In Hama, a recent move to prioritize relatives in investment auctions threatens to foment family conflicts and further tear Syria’s social fabric. 

Turkey plans to build 250,000 concrete housing units in northern Syria as it eyes the “voluntary return” of one million refugees. But more than housing stands in the way of returns. 

An exceptionally hard frost swept across northwestern Syria last month. In its wake, hard-pressed farmers in Idlib are struggling to recoup their losses and replant their fields. 

As US-led coalition forces target Islamic State and al-Qaeda figures in densely-populated Idlib province, civilians find themselves in the crosshairs, facing death, injury, and property damage. 

Increased demand for fuel makes winter a key season for women and children smugglers, but working in this weather is more difficult because of the muddy roads they traverse.

While al-Hassan used to support his family of eight from the revenue of the land he inherited from his father, he now lives on “the monthly food basket that I receive in the camp.”