UN: Nearly 700,000 people displaced in Idlib over the past 10 weeks

"Nearly 700,000 people have been forcibly displaced in the Idlib province over the past 10 weeks. That is the largest number of people displaced in such a short time period since the conflict had erupted in Syria," Laerke said.

At the same time, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)  spokesperson Andrej Mahecic said that UNHCR is deeply concerned about the safety and well-being of civilians in north-west Syria, adding that the humanitarian crisis is becoming increasingly desperate, with massive numbers of people on the move.

"Existing camps and settlements of internally displaced persons are overcrowded, and shelter in existing houses is getting scarce. Many schools and mosques are filled with displaced families, and even finding a place in an unfinished building has become close to impossible," he said. (ILKHA)