Turkey sets humanitarian bridge for Kobani: Sanliurfa governor

Turkey has imposed a humanitarian bridge to help those stranded in the sieged Syrian town of Kobani and nearly 200,000 Syrian Kurds who fled into Turkey to escape from ISIL militants, said a key officer in the Turkish southeastern border town of Suruç, Şanlıurfa.

"We have allowed 150,000 Syrians to cross into Turkey safely in the first wave of a refugee influx while this number increased to 192,000  in the following four days. A majority of them are now being accommodated with their relatives in Turkey. Nearly 15,000 have been placed in a tent city we have set up for them," said Şanlıurfa governor İzzettin Küçük, speaking to Yenişafak reporter in his office.

"We are still working on a new tent city which is much larger and has a capacity of 20,000 people. It will have every sort of facility from hospital, school to sport center and even culture center," he said.

Küçük said that some NGOs, or non-governmental organizations, from the Kurdish enclave in northern Iraq have met the daily food required for 30,000 Syrian Kurds for the first two weeks.

"It has been the Turkish Red Crescent and Turkey's emergency and disaster management unit which have provided the most humanitarian aid. Not the foreign countries, but foreign organizations have sent aid to Syrian refugees who have found shelter in Turkey," said the governor.

The Turkish governor emphasized Turkey has extended its helping hand for every injured Syrian Kurd coming from Kobani without making any discrimination, despite the life-threatening conditions along the Turkish-Syrian border.

"The Mürşitpınar crossing can be hit by any mortar launched from the Syrian territory. Two days ago, ISIL militants fired 31 mortar shells during an exchange of fire. Every mortar has left destruction 50 meters in diameter around the spot where it has fallen. The police, the gendarmerie and the paramedics have exerted frantic efforts to save every injured civilian who poured into the area along the Turkish border," he said.

The governor also said Turkey has received 802 injured refugees, most of whom have suffered from bullet wounds. "The state hospital in Suruç town has been asserted to the refugees' treatment. Those with more serious injuries have been transfered to hospitals in nearby provinces," he added.