EU News
Printable version

Kobane refugee crisis: EU steps up assistance

The European Commission is giving € 3.9 million in humanitarian funding to help meet the urgent needs of the thousands of people who have fled to Turkey in recent weeks to escape the fighting in the Syrian town of Kobane.

“Over 180 000 Syrians have been displaced to Turkey by the fierce fighting in Kobane. This further adds to the impact of what is the biggest humanitarian crisis of our times. We are directing urgently needed funds to help the humanitarian organizations on the ground deal with the massive influx of refugees,” said Kristalina Georgieva, Commissioner for International Cooperation, Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Response.

This funding will help humanitarian organizations provide clean water, shelter and medicine to refugees, as well as ensure sanitation and food services.

It is part of the European Commission's €150 million humanitarian aid budget for the Syrian crisis in 2014. Jointly, the European Union continues to lead the international response to the crisis with nearly €3 billion of funding, mobilised by the Commission and Member States collectively in humanitarian, development, economic and stabilisation assistance so far.

Background

The town of Kobane near the Turkish border has been the target of ISIL fighters for the past three weeks. This is the biggest influx of Syrian refugees to Turkey since the beginning of the crisis over three years ago. The European Commission has been stepping up its assistance to help meet the needs of more than a million refugees seeking shelter in Turkey, those from Syria as well as Iraq, by increasing its humanitarian funding from the initially foreseen € 3.5 million to € 8.5 million in 2014.

For more information:

The European Commission's humanitarian aid and civil protection:

http://ec.europa.eu/echo/index_en.htm

Factsheet on humanitarian response to Syria crisis:

http://ec.europa.eu/echo/files/aid/countries/factsheets/syria_en.pdf

Commissioner Georgieva's website:

http://ec.europa.eu/commission_2010-2014/georgieva/index_en.htm

Contacts :

David Sharrock (+32 2 296 89 09)

Irina Novakova (+32 2 295 75 17)

Peter Stano (+32 2 295 74 84)

Anca Paduraru (+32 2 296 64 30)

For the public: Europe Direct by phone 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 or by e-mail

 

Share this article

Latest News from
EU News

Facing the Future...find out more