Turkey mobilized for Aleppo with tent camp, treatment of injured

While Ankara pursues diplomatic efforts to extend a cease-fire and secure the evacuation of civilians from war-torn Aleppo, Turkey also reaches out to those leaving the city, which has been suffering under the blockade of forces loyal to Bashar Assad. A tent camp is being set up within Syria, while Turkish charities funnel tons of humanitarian aid, including food and blankets, to address the immediate needs of the displaced. Injured evacuees from Syria were also admitted to Turkish hospitals for treatment.

The Turkish Red Crescent is preparing 10,000 tents in the Syrian city of Idlib for those displaced from Aleppo. Red Crescent President Kerem Kınık told Anadolu Agency on Friday that the camp, located some 7 kilometers from the Turkish border, will be fully equipped like the camps for Syrian refugees in Turkey, with a school, clinic, mobile toilets and bath facilities. Kınık said they were also preparing to increase the capacity of the refugee camps amid reports that the number of people evacuated from the city could reach up to 50,000. Kınık said they expected to finish the first stage of the camp within three-to-four days.

Deputy Prime Minister Veysi Kaynak, who oversees an emergency agency, told Sabah newspaper they chose a safe area near the border for the camp set up to aid the internally displaced as it was far from the areas exposed to Assad forces' airstrikes. "We have anti-aircraft guns that can lock on their warplanes and they avoid approaching there for this reason," he said. Kaynak said they were already prepared for the displaced and can set up accommodation for them as soon as sides agree on a continuous evacuation. Kaynak said they were also prepared for an influx of Syrian refugees to Turkey.

Turkey also received more than 60 injured people from Aleppo, who were being treated at Turkish hospitals near the Syrian border as of Friday. One of the injured died of his wounds at a Turkish hospital, while four others were in critical condition, authorities announced. Health Minister Recep Akdağ said that they deployed three field hospitals and dispatched ambulances and medical personnel on the border for admission of the injured. Speaking to Turkey's Kanal 24, he said they also allocated more than 800 beds at hospitals across the country in preparation for an influx of injured Syrians from Aleppo.