Qatar to donate $50 million for Syrian people

By Serdar Bitmez and Gulsen Topcu

DOHA, Qatar

Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani has ordered that $50 million be allocated to support Syrian refugees and displaced people, local media reported Tuesday.

According to the Qatar News Agency, the donation will be used for Syrian refugees in Turkey, Lebanon and Jordan as well as displaced people within Syria.

It added that the Qatar Development Fund, in coordination with the White Helmets civil defense agency and UN agencies, will be responsible for spending the amount in direct humanitarian relief programs.

Turkey hosts more than 3.5 million Syrian refugees, more than any other country in the world.

Syria has only just begun to emerge from a devastating conflict that began in 2011 when the Bashar al-Assad regime cracked down on demonstrators with unexpected ferocity.