In Pictures

In Pictures: Newly displaced Syrian children in makeshift camps

Hundreds of thousands of people have been uprooted by a Syrian government assault on Idlib province since December.

Syrian children play at a makeshift camp for displaced people who fled pro-regime forces attacks in the Idlib and Aleppo provinces, on February 18, 2020 north of the city of Idlib, near the Turkish bo — Syrian children play at a makeshift camp for displaced people who fled attacks by pro-government forces in Idlib and Aleppo provinces. [Bakr Alkasem/AFP]

Some 900,000 people have been forced from their homes and shelters in northwestern Syria since December, leaving huge numbers to sleep rough in the bitter cold.

The United Nations said half a million among them were children, some of whom have died of exposure in snow-covered camps.

It warned that the crisis could worsen unless a ceasefire is reached.

“Over the past four days alone, some 43,000 newly displaced people have fled western Aleppo where fighting has been particularly fierce,” UN spokesman David Swanson told AFP on Tuesday.

A staggering 300,000 people have been displaced since the beginning of February, he said.

The wave of displacement is the biggest in nearly nine years of the civil war, which has forced half of Syria’s population to flee their homes.

“The violence in northwest Syria is indiscriminate. Health facilities, schools, residential areas, mosques and markets have been hit,” the UN head of humanitarian affairs and emergency relief, Mark Lowcock, said on Monday.

“The biggest humanitarian horror story of the 21st century will only be avoided if Security Council members, and those with influence, overcome individual interests and put a collective stake in humanity first,” Lowcock added.

More than 400 civilians have been killed since mid-December, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, with violence on Tuesday leaving at least another two dead.

Save The Children said seven children, including a baby only seven months old, have died in freezing temperatures and dire conditions in the camps.

“Those families who could take some of their belongings as they fled from their homes are reportedly burning whatever they could find, including pieces of furniture and whatever can be spared to stay warm for a short while,” it said.

Humanitarian agency officials say it is the biggest single displacement of civilians in the nine-year-old war. But they lack the shelter and supplies to support them. — Humanitarian agency officials say it is the biggest single displacement of civilians in the nine-year war. But they lack the shelter and supplies to support them. [Khalil Ashawi/Reuters] [Reuters]

Syrians watch the horizon from a makeshift camp for displaced people who fled pro-regime forces attacks in the Idlib and Aleppo provinces, on February 18, 2020 north of the city of Idlib, near the Tur — Women and children - who comprise more than 80 percent of the newly displaced people - are again among those who suffer most. [Bakr Alkasem/AFP]

Syrian children play with a dog at a makeshift camp for displaced people who fled pro-regime forces attacks in the Idlib and Aleppo provinces, on February 18, 2020 north of the city of Idlib, near the — Syrian children play with a dog at a makeshift camp for displaced people. [Bakr Alkasem/AFP]

A truck loaded with a family''s belongings drives on the outskirts of the town of Deir Ballut as Syrians fleeing attacks by pro-regime forces on rebel-held areas in the Aleppo and Idlib provinces head — The wave is the biggest since the start of the civil war nearly nine years ago. [Rami Al Sayed/AFP]

Syrian children watch the horizon from a makeshift camp for displaced people who fled pro-regime forces attacks in the Idlib and Aleppo provinces, on February 18, 2020 north of the city of Idlib, near — Of Syria's 17 million people, 5.5 million are living as refugees in the region, mostly in Turkey, and a further six million are uprooted within their own country. [Bakr Alkasem/AFP]

A Syrian man stands at a makeshift camp for displaced people who fled pro-regime forces attacks in the Idlib and Aleppo provinces, on February 18, 2020 north of the city of Idlib, near the Turkish bor — A Syrian man stands at a makeshift camp for displaced people north of the city of Idlib, near the Turkish border. [Bakr Alkasem/AFP]

Syrians who fled pro-regime forces attacks in the Idlib and Aleppo provinces are pictured at a makeshift camp for displaced people on February 18, 2020 north of the city of Idlib, near the Turkish bor — Civilians are struggling to find shelter amid harsh winter conditions with snow, rain and wind from Storm Ciara. [Bakr Alkasem/AFP]

A Syrian boy plays with a football at a makeshift camp for displaced people who fled pro-regime forces attacks in the Idlib and Aleppo provinces, on February 18, 2020 north of the city of Idlib, near — Nearly 300 civilians were killed in the most recent wave of attacks in northwest Syria, with 93 percent of the casualties caused by Syrian and Russian forces, UN says. [Bakr Alkasem/AFP]

A Syrian girl walks at a makeshift camp for displaced people who fled pro-regime forces attacks in the Idlib and Aleppo provinces, on February 18, 2020 north of the city of Idlib, near the Turkish bor — Turkey, which backs rebel groups and is fearful of a new exodus of refugees crossing its border, has retaliated militarily, with displaced civilians caught in between. [Bakr AlKasem/AFP]

A Syrian woman walks at a makeshift camp for displaced people who fled pro-regime forces attacks in the Idlib and Aleppo provinces, on February 18, 2020 north of the city of Idlib, near the Turkish bo — A wave of displacement that has seen around 900,000 people flee a government offensive in Syria's Idlib region is the biggest of the nearly nine-year conflict, the United Nations said. [Bakr Alkasem/AFP]