Displaced people in Washokani Camp in North and East Syria suffer in absence of international humanitarian organizations

HASAKAH, Syria — Since the October 2019 invasion of Tel Abyad and Rish Ayno (Ras al-Ayn) in North and East Syria by Turkey and the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army (SNA), tens of thousands of civilians have been internally displaced. Nearly 15,000 of the displaced now reside in the purpose built Washokani Camp, west of Hasakah city.

The inhabitants of the camp come mostly from Rish Ayno, Abu Rasayn (Zarkan), and the villages in the Tel Tamr countryside. Conditions in the camp are difficult, with life being made especially difficult due to the lack of international humanitarian assistance in North and East Syria.

A SuroyoTV correspondent in Tel Tamr investigated the conditions of the camp and met with Co-Chair of the Washokani Camp Administration Alaa al-Ali.

“The camp was established in 2019 and houses about 14,700 people,” said al-Ali. “Some 2,370 workers service the camp.”

“The camp suffers from lack of international humanitarian support,” al-Ali added. “The organizations present in the camp are only local because the Syrian regime does not recognize the camp since it is administered by the Autonomous Administration, so the aid provided to refugees is very little.”

Al-Ali spoke about the camp’s service, health, and educational facilities in light of the lack of support for international organizations and the decline in services provided by their local organizations.

“We suffer from a shortage of medical drugs and specialized personnel in all fields of medicine,” he stated.

Regarding basic goods and services, al-Ali said that, “There is a local market in the camp that somewhat meets people’s needs, but we still lack reliable electric power.”

As for water, he stated that, “We resorted to distributing water by trucks until the completion of a water network, which is still under maintenance.”