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clinics, hospitals, schools and other essential services and infrastructure such as water and sanitation networks have been destroyed or severely damaged. Large-scale displacement is resulting in over-crowded shelters. Host communities’ capacity to support is overstretched. Violence makes it difficult for people to have access to safe water, food, and health care. Livelihoods are compromised or destroyed, leading many to flee for economic as well as safety reasons. Violence, insecurity and displacement are negatively impacting people’s physical and psychological well- being, and they have limited or no access to basic social services. An estimated 1.2 million to 2.5 million people are internally


displaced by the violence, taking shelter in public buildings, parks, and with host families. Some have been displaced two or more times. Due to growing population displacement, the need for shelter and non-food items throughout Syria continues to rise. Many of the country’s internally displaced persons are currently housed in nearly 2,000 schools and other public buildings, which lack adequate heating and sanitation facilities. Low temperatures with the onset of winter are creating additional burdens, as shelters are not adequately insulated from the cold. UN-OCHA reports that three million Syrians are at imminent


risk of food insecurity, including 1.5 million who need food assistance over the next three to six months. In areas where fighting is taking place, food prices are reported to have almost doubled since before the conflict. The prices of some staple foods are on the rise. Wheat prices have increased 11 percent due to disruptions in local supply chains. This is expected to worsen as the conflict continues. Cooking fuel is also in short supply, selling on the black market at a 400 percent mark-up. The government is reported to have reserves to import the necessary food and non- food commodities, however at a high cost. As people struggle to


LSESD is leading a multi- church initiative through partners within Syria, Lebanon and Jordan to assist families and individuals impacted by the Syrian conflict.


make ends meet, the World Food Program warns that households may turn to “negative” coping strategies, such as reducing the number of meals or portion size, consuming lower quality food or taking children out of school so they might work to earn additional income. With the cold winter weather setting in and no foreseeable end


to the fighting, the outlook for people trapped in the conflict is grim. Humanitarian organizations are struggling to cope with the humanitarian situation, despite increasing the scope of the relief interventions. If developments continue on the current trajectory, the UN estimates that up to four million people will be in need of humanitarian assistance inside Syria by early 2013.


Syrian Refugees Meanwhile, people continue to flee across Syria’s borders,


becoming refugees in neighboring Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq, and


Food Distribution in DAMASCUS


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