Turkey and the UN held talks on cooperation to provide humanitarian aid to the Syrians.
Turkish Deputy Foreign Minister Sedat Onal discussed with the UN Assistant Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, Martin Griffiths, cooperation between Turkey and the United Nations.
During their meeting, the Turkish minister said that the “satisfaction with the close and developing cooperation between Turkey and OCHA had been confirmed” during their meeting.
“Turkey’s efforts to alleviate humanitarian needs of Syrians were discussed, and Turkey and UN’s joint work in this regard was reviewed. The importance of improving the humanitarian situation in Yemen and Afghanistan was also stressed,” it added.
The statement added that the two sides reviewed the efforts made to meet the Syrians’ humanitarian needs, the joint work between Turkey and the UN, and exchanged views on Yemen and Afghanistan.
Turkish presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalin also discussed the humanitarian situation and aid issues in Syria and Afghanistan with Griffiths.
Meanwhile, the Interior Ministry announced several decisions regarding Syrians in Ankara. It assessed the situation with the Governor’s Office, the Migration Department, and the gendarmerie and police units and decided to close the regional borders of Ankara for temporary protection registration.
The Ministry closed off the capital to refugees starting on September 02, and all Syrian migrants currently living in the city will be sent to their registered town of residence.
Illegal immigrants with no protection status or residence permit will remain in detention and later be removed to administrative detention in deportation centers ahead of their deportation procedures.
The statement said that the Ministry would also prosecute businesses owned by foreign nationals that don’t have a tax certificate.
Hostility against refugees is on the rise in Turkey, with some opposition parties and politicians calling for stricter restrictions.
The recent decisions of the Interior Ministry came after a Turkish teenager died during a fight between Syrians and Turks in Altindag neighborhood in Ankara.
About a hundred Turkish men attacked homes and shops belonging to Syrians in the east of the capital, home to a large Syrian refugee community.
