Page 154 - A Helping Hand for Refugees

The Syrian civil war that began in March 2011 is now in its fourth
year. During the crisis, more than 200,000 people have lost their lives.
More than 11 million have had to leave the homes and lands they have
spent their lives in; of these, some 7.6 million are living in exile inside
Syria, while 4 million have had to flee abroad to save the lives of them-
selves and their families. The lives of these people, which were per-
haps not so very different to those of the people reading these lines five
years ago, have been completely ruined by the tragedy that has struck

them. Those who have managed to flee the horror are having to start
all over again.

T The climate of suffering and uncertainty that
has lasted four years

Millions of Syrians living in exile for four years are struggling to
survive another freezing winter in hunger and poverty. These

152 A Helping Hand for Refugees