Multiple earthquakes struck Syria and Turkey in 2023, leaving many people homeless or displaced and harming the environment and architecture. 

On February 6, 2023, a magnitude 7.5 earthquake hit southern Turkey and northern Syria. Nine hours later, another earthquake of a similar magnitude struck the same area. 

Over 50,000 people perished from the combined earthquakes, which had a significant impact on Syrian refugees and the citizens of Turkey (especially the youth).

Many organizations have established camps to give those in Turkey and Syria, as well as those who have fled the areas, food, water, and medical attention. However, most of these shelters have become overcrowded, and as their supply of resources diminishes, so does the extent of their support.

Many Syrians located in Turkey have faced the discrimination of anti-Syrian groups, being subjected to unfair and dangerous treatment. For more on this xenophobia, AlJazeera journalist Lucas Bozzo spoke to many Syrians in a recent article “Turkey’s Syrian refugee youth worry about their post-quake future.”

“All I want is a nice life,” said Mahmoud, a young Syrian factory worker as he talks about Anti-Syrian sentiment in Turkey. Syrian youth in Turkey are facing not only psychological distress due to the trauma caused by the earthquake, but also from the way they are being treated due to their identity.

 For example, Mahmoud talks about how many companies have begun to take money from Syrian workers, paying them less than Turkey employees; this has impacted several of these workers’ livelihoods.

“Shelters are not solutions,”  said Mahmoud’s older sister, Khadija, saying she feels unsafe at shelters and guilty for defying her Islamic faith.

To ensure that Syrian refugees are in a safe environment with appropriate respect to their religious boundaries, one solution would be to relocate them to a better environment with a diverse population so that  Syrians won’t feel as isolated. This would not only increase opportunities of equitable employment, but help them live comfortably and authentically.