After six years of war, Syria prays for peace
Photos by Patrick Nicholson
Stories by Patrick Nicholson, Josephine McKenna & Val Morgan
The war in Syria began on 15 March 2011. Six years later, the country has been left devastated. “We appeal for peace,” said Caritas Syria President Bishop Antoine Audo of Aleppo. “We need peace and reconciliation. Peace is possible in Syria!”
400,000
lives have been claimed by the war
14 million
people need help
58%
of the local hospitals have either been damaged or destroyed
The war has claimed more than 400,000 lives and uprooted more than half of Syria’s 22 million people. Some 14 million people need help, with 11.5 million having no access to hospitals or doctors, 40 percent of whom are children.
An estimated 58 percent of the local hospitals have either been damaged or destroyed during the war, leaving an estimated 300,000 women currently pregnant who won’t have the needed help during delivery.
Caritas works both inside Syria, in neighbouring countries which host the bulk of the refugees and across Europe where hundreds of thousands have fled in search of safety.