Syrian refugees in Turkey fall to 11,100

Syrian refugees sheltering in Turkish camps say they are grateful to Turkey for offering them refuge from bloody unrest, but many also miss their homes and some are starting to return.The number of Syrians sheltering at tent cities in Turkey's border province of Hatay decreased to 11,122 after 375 people went home of their own accord on Sunday and Monday, Turkish officials said.

Turkey has begun extending aid across its border with Syria to help people who have massed there fleeing unrest, the emergency situations agency said Sunday."Distribution of humanitarian aid has begun to meet the urgent food needs of Syrian citizens waiting on the Syrian side of our border," the statement, posted on the agency's website, said.It was the first time that the Turkish authorities had launched a cross-border aid mission after having sheltered more than 10,000 Syrian refugees in tent cities on Turkish territory.

ZAATARI, Jordan — Syrian refugees in a Jordanian camp attacked aid workers with sticks and stones on Tuesday, frustrated after cold, howling winds swept away their tents and torrential rains flooded muddy streets overnight. Police said seven aid workers were injured. The refugees may be about to face even deeper misery with warnings of a major snowstorm threatening Jordan and Turkey — the two countries with the largest Syrian refugee populations.

Camp Run by Syrian-Americans Atimah Refuee Camp, Syria — Firas Salam struggled to carry the eight liter jerry can up the hill. When the thirteen year old reached the top, he veered right into a row of tents. But before he could make it to the 220 square foot nylon bivouac, he slipped into the muddy earth, spilling his can.

The number of Syrians who have taken refuge in Turkey to escape bloody unrest in their country has increased to about 10,100, Anatolia news agency reported Saturday.The figure went up after another 421 Syrians, mostly women and children, arrived at tent cities that the Turkish Red Crescent has erected in the border province of Hatay, Anatolia said.Turkish authorities have barred all outside access to the refugees accommodated in the camps.

RAMTHA, JORDAN — Like many of their fellow Jordanians, Hamzi Dardur and his two friends initially welcomed the Syrians who began surging across the nearby border last year. After all, their neighbours were fleeing one of the nastiest civil wars the region has ever seen. Now, the young men are not feeling so magnanimous.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has warned that the fall of his regime would destabilise the region "for many years," as US President Barack Obama announced talks with Middle East allies over the crisis.

Syrians fearful of reprisals poured out of a northern town at the centre of anti-government protests on Wednesday as pressure on President Bashar al-Assad grew at the UN Security Council.Some of those fleeing the town of Jisr al-Shughur sought sanctuary in neighbouring Turkey after Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said his country would not turn away Syrian refugees.About 60 Syrians, three of them wounded, crossed into Turkey on Wednesday, bringing to some 450 the number of people taking refuge in the country, an AFP reporter witnessed.