Two-story refugee camp in Turkey offers the best for Syrians

A new "accommodation facility," the term Turkey gives camps for refugees with temporary status, showcases Turkey's much-praised approach in caring for thousands of Syrians who fled the civil war.

The two-story "container city" built of prefabricated housing units in the southern city of Kahramanmaraş near the Syrian border hosts more than 18,000 refugees and has a capacity of 25,000 occupants. Unlike primitive tent camps where refugees live in squalor in other countries, this camp offers amenities and facilities ranging from eight playgrounds for children, four basketball courts, four football pitches, a grocery store, two rehabilitation centers, four schools and a mosque. Except for the housing units resembling shipping containers, the place looks more like a modern-day Turkish (or Syrian, as Arabic signs point out) neighborhood than a refugee camp.

The Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD), the state-run directorate that oversees 22 other camps, runs the place that hosts Syrians from all walks of life displaced by the brutal conflict still underway five years after rebels took up arms against the forces of Bashar Assad.

The refugee camp, built in an area of 374,000-square-meters, opened its doors to refugees in October and is the latest to join the growing number of camps primarily built in cities near Turkey's southern border with Syria. Some 258,000 Syrians are accommodated in the camps. Although this is a tiny fraction compared to the nearly 3 million Syrian refugees that Turkey hosts, it still means a lot for the country's renowned hospitality for refugees in the face of little aid from the international community.

The "container city" stands out among other camps thanks to its two-story housing units furnished with bathrooms and kitchen, providing water and electricity around the clock. It is also among the safest camps with gendarmerie troops guarding the outside perimeter and private security guards patrolling the place around the clock. A firefighting team is also stationed in the camp against fires, as several people were killed in fires in other refugee camps over the past two years. Some 800 staff members work at the camp to serve the refugees, who have expressed their gratitude to Turkey. Fatima Abdourrahman fled to Turkey four years ago and after struggling for a better life in houses she rented or squatted, she finally settled in the camp. "It is better than I expected. They offer everything we need," Abdourrahman said. "Since we arrived, Turkey has embraced us, and thank God, we are not deprived of anything. It feels like home. Honestly, I was worried what would happen to us when I came to Turkey at first, but nothing bad happened, and we are just grateful to Turkey," she said. Abdourrahman hopes the war in her country will be over some day, and she would host "my Turkish sisters and brothers for vacation this time in Syria."

Fadila Hassan, another occupant of the refugee camp, says the camp is "just wonderful." "The Turkish people did everything for us. They shared their houses, their bread with us. We made some very good friends here. I thank everyone," Hassan said.