Statistics show plight of Syrians fleeing brutal civil war

  • Syria

As aid agencies gather in London ahead of an international conference to draw up a new funding deal to help Syrian refugees, official statistics reveal the plight of people fleeing their country's brutal civil war.

The conference, hosted by Britain, Germany, Norway and the UN, has been described a "historic opportunity" for the international community to fund aid operations for millions of people displaced in Syria and the neighbouring countries over the coming year.

Syrian refugees wait to cross into Jordan where thousands have already sought refuge. Credit: Reuters

The UN is appealing for $7.7 billion (£5.4 billion) to fund aid operations after last year's appeal for $2.9 billion (£2 billion) was 60% under-funded.

The Mercy Corps describes Syria's civil war as the worst humanitarian crisis of our time with half the country's pre-war population killed or forced to flee their homes to neighbouring countries or risking their lives on the way to Europe.

More than 800,000 people have applied for asylum in Europe with the majority risking a perilous journey by sea. Credit: Reuters

Some 4.1 million Syrians have fled their country since 2011, according to NPR, which is the equivalent of 50 families being uprooted every hour of every day since March 2011.

While 813,599 Syrians applied for asylum in the EU between 2011 and 2015, 7.6 million remain displaced in the country.

More than 3.7 million have sought refuge in neighbouring countries including Jordan, Turkey and Lebanon.

With more than one million refugees crossing the Mediterranean, an estimated 253,700 – or one in four – were children according to Unicef.

Displaced children, who fled with their families, wait in the Syrian village of Akda to cross into Turkey. Credit: Reuters

Some 3.3 million children have been displaced according to World Vision.

And Unicef says that 37,498 Syrian children have been born refugees in the first three years of the civil war between 2011 to January 2014.

A Syrian refugee child receives treatment at a health centre in Jordan. Credit: Reuters

At least 250,000 people have died in the war in Syria and 1.5 million people have been permanently injured or disabled.

The Syrian Network for Human Rights estimated in January that the death toll had risen to 251,000 and the World Vision says it could come in even higher estimating 320,000 have lost their lives.

A girl pushes her father in a wheelchair in Douma, Syria. Credit: Reuters

There were 471 civilians killed by Russian air strikes in January 2016 alone, 127 children and 56 women according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

The Observatory says 211 others were killed by Bashar al-Assad's regime air forces in January.

A child carries a school bag near damaged buildings in Harasta, Syria. Credit: Reuters