Turkish aid agency opens charity store in Syria's Idlib

HATAY, Turkey

A Turkish aid agency opened a charity store in Syria’s northern Idlib, an agency representative said on Saturday.

Zeki Tahiroglu, local coordinator of Istanbul-based Humanitarian Relief Foundation (IHH), said the clothing store will benefit around 500 war victims on a weekly basis.

Tahiroglu said it was the 30th store opened by IHH across Syria.

The foundation will continue to open more stores in various regions of Syria, Tahiroglu added.

The IHH has been carrying out aid projects in war-torn Syria since the country’s devastating conflict began in 2011 when the Bashar al-Assad regime cracked down on demonstrators with unexpected ferocity.

Since Afrin’s liberation in March of last year by Turkey’s Operation Olive Branch, the aid agency has distributed hot meals to an estimated one million Syrians.

In January of 2018, Turkey launched the operation with the stated aim of purging Afrin of YPG/PKK and Daesh terrorists.

* Writing by Jeyhun Aliyev