New temporary homes help IDPs cope with the cold
(11 Jan 2015) LEADIN: As winter bites in Iraq's northern Kurdish region, a new camp is helping internally-displaced people to cope with the cold. But the site, which boasts temporary shelters, is not big enough for everyone. STORYLINE: Children enjoy playing in the snow, outside the town of Bamarne. But living here is far from fun for those who've fled their homes, now internally-displaced. Winter temperatures dip to minus two degrees Celsius during the day, and as low as minus five at night. But this camp is providing some respite from the cold weather. Around 900 temporary homes have been set up. The Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) moved families from tents to here, as snow began to fall last week. Hassan Haji Sheikh is a 76-year-old Yazidi from Sinjar. He lives with his wife and ten children in one of the temporary structures. As he shows off his makeshift home, he says conditions are improving. "It's been three days since we have been here and we're very comfortable," he says. But there's no electricity yet which makes it difficult to cope with the weather conditions. "If there was electricity we could use a heater and it would make it easier for us," he explains. But Sheikh and his family are lucky. Not everyone managed to get one of these homes. So some families have set up tents next to camp in the hope they'll be assigned one soon. While they wait, the melting snow makes it's way into their tents. Khalaf Rasho and his family live here. "Look, look. There is hole there and it causes a leak," he says, pointing a problem with his tent. Rasho says it's having an impact on the family's health. "Look, the water comes inside the tent. It's very cold for the girls, they got sick. I took them to the hospital this morning. It's very unpleasant," he explains. He's worried about his nieces, "Hanan" and "Shirin," who don't want to give their real names for security reasons. "I told them we have girls who were held captive by ISIS, but nobody is taking care of us. I told them it's very cold and the water comes inside the tent, but nothing so far," says Rasho. While the girls have made it to the relative safety of the camp, they say other members of their family are in Mosul. "One night we escaped from ISIS. My mother and father are still being held captive by ISIS in Mosul," says "Hanan." And although ten family members are forced to share the tent, the girls want to stay close. "We are with too many, we can't live with all of us in one tent and it's cold. But we can't live without them because we are afraid." Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter: / ap_archive Facebook: / aparchives Instagram: / apnews You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...
