Syrians face few options as winter sets in

IMPROVISED HEATING DEVICE: In Syria, an ongoing energy shortage has people using whatever is available to stave off the coming cold of winter.

Here, in rebel-controlled Daraa province, residents use the tail of a missile to carve out a stove.

A shortage of funding will result in tens of thousands of Syrian refugees in Lebanon facing winter without any protection, the UNCHR announced on Tuesday, a problem Syrians inside the country also face amidst a general energy crisis and a lack of basic infrastructure.

“It is imperative to provide [refugees in Lebanon] with adequate means of warmth such as proper clothing and blankets to stay alive,” the UNCHR said in its weekly report, referring to the estimated half million Syrian refugees in Lebanon that need basic materials to survive the winter. 

On Tuesday, the Syrian government attempted to allay those concerns by announcing that it had imported 3,500 tons of gas to supplement its current supplies.

“There is no concern or fear for a possible shortage,” an official told pro-regime newspaper Al-Watan.

-November 6, 2014

-Photo courtesy of @HamzaAlshaheed.

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