The rapid increase in the number of Syrians fleeing from ongoing violence has brought many of the problems surrounding hosting refugees to the surface as residents living in the host cities of refugee camps begin to reveal their discontent, Hurriyet Daily News reports.
While a member of the main Syrian opposition group blames the diversity of Syrian refugees for recent incidents, some locals in the southern city of Hatay say they are fed up.
“Two of the rebels climbed to the balcony of our house and started to observe the house,” a local from Dikmece village, located 10 kilometers away from the city center, was quoted as saying in daily Hürriyet yesterday. “We complain to the authorities but nothing happens.”
The tensions grew after members of the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) were refused access to a refugee camp.
CHP leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu slammed the government after a party delegation was not allowed to visit the Apaydın refugee camp near Hatay, which hosts defected Syrian soldiers.
“I sent our deputies to check out the camp, which was said to be full of agents and spies,” Kılıçdaroğlu said while in the central Anatolian province of Afyonkarahisar. “But the authorities said you cannot enter this camp. Now I expect an answer from the government: ‘What is in that camp? Who are you training in that camp? Are you raising men to spill Muslims’ blood?’”
Turkey is currently home to nearly 80,000 Syrians who have fled violence in their country since March 2011. Turkey representative of the Syrian National Council (SNC) said the number of Syrian pro-government militiamen who fled to Turkey during the heavy clashes in Aleppo have increased rapidly in the last 10 days.
