Comfort


from the cold


How UNHCR plans to keep Syrians in Jordan warm this winter


Abu and Um Bassam, an elderly couple married for nearly 50 years, sit outside in their courtyard as they reminisce about years gone by. They raised eight children back home in southwest Syria where they lived on a modest plot, planting crops and raising livestock.


Um and Abu Bassam’s happy memories of their homeland were tarnished when they fled Syria in 2013 to escape the escalating conflict. Their life now is worlds apart from the one back home – and winter is the most challenging time. He can barely afford fuel, so they gather what they can – leaves, branches, newspapers – to burn for warmth in the colder months. A stack of twigs for the next fire sits nearby in the courtyard. “We need to buy fuel, clothes, medicine, everything,” explains Abu Bassam. Um Bassam agrees. “We have a lot of needs in winter. What can we do? We try to manage.”


Like most of the 650,000 Syrian refugees in Jordan, the Bassams live below the poverty line and must rely on assistance to survive. The cash assistance they receive each month from UNHCR, barely covers the rent.


The family is anxiously waiting to find out whether they’ll receive winter aid this year – and it can’t come soon enough. For now, they spend time outside in the fresh air. Before long, the rain and freezing temperatures will drive them indoors into the single-storey concrete structure they have to call home. This run-down property isn’t a pleasant place at any time of year. Mould creeps along the wall, tracing the lines of old water


damage and fresh leaks from the cracked windows and holes in the ceiling.


Um Bassam is particularly worried about how the winter will affect their son, Ahmed, who is disabled. They’ve already had to move his bed once to avoid drips from the leaking roof. “I always worry about him, and I want to keep him warm. Sometimes the blankets get so cold.”


Vast parts of Syria have been devastated by the conflict, and many families have no homes left to go back to. Yet Abu Bassam is still hopeful.


“My dream is to return to our country.” He looks forward to the day they can start to rebuild their lives in Syria.


Thanks to your support, UNHCR’s winter aid program can focus on three main areas of support:


• Core relief items such as thermal blankets


• Seasonal cash assistance for vulnerable families to meet their extra needs that arise during the winter months, like buying heaters, fuel, food or medicine


• Shelter weatherproofing kits


GREECE FLASH UPDATE: MORIA FIRE EMERGENCY


After the initial fire which broke out on the evening of Tuesday, September 8th causing extensive damage to thousands of asylum-seekers’ shelters and common areas, more fires were reported on the evening of September 9th on September 10th


12,000 people have been affected by the fire.4,000 are children.


WHAT UNHCR IS DOING: • Delivering some 2,000 family tents, as well as 65,700 core relief items. • Assisting with preparations for a new temporary site to provide a safe roof to an estimated 8,000 people.


• Providing support in water, hygiene and sanitation in the new site. • Providing emergency cash assistance to households affected by the fire.


7


and


. UNHCR offered immediate support and called for restraint amid reported tensions between local communities and asylum-seekers. Donor support is needed to continue to provide aid to Greece.


© UNHCR/Mohammad Hawari


© UNHCR


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