UK announces aid for Syrian refugees

Britain's department for international development (DfID) has announced a further £4m in aid for Syrian refugees. Half of this sum will go to the UNHCR and the other half will be for humanitarian organisations. This brings the total amount of DfD's allocation of funds for the Syrina humanitarian crisis to £8.5m. The announcement comes ahead of Friday's meeting in Geneva of a humanitarian forum on Syria. It will be hosted by the UN relief agency (OCHA), the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, and the European Commission's humanitarian arm (ECHO). Refugees have been fleeing Syria for the safety of neighbouring states such as Turkey, Jordan and Lebanon. The aid will include items for shelter such as cutlery and blankets, as well as food and water. Announcing the approval of this batch of aid,Andrew Mitchell, the international development secretary, said: This new British support will ensure that thousands of people receive potentially life-saving help, whether injured as a direct result of the regime's violence against its own people or trapped by the fighting and denied the medicines they need. Also, following an increased number of refugees seeking assistance in the last two weeks in the face of escalating violence, it will also help to meet the basic needs of hundreds of frightened families who have fled home with nothing".