News Stories

The Junior Professional Officers (JPO) programme invites new talent to UNHCR by offering young professionals an opportunity to obtain training and exposure to the organization’s humanitarian work either in field assignment or at headquarters.

This is the story of Leyla, a strong refugee woman from Syria. With the help of the Human Resource Development Foundation (HRDF), Leyla felt more empowered as a woman in Turkey and now, she is helping other female refugees lead more empowered lives. 

A refugee story letter on how to establish a business, build a network and become a successful entrepreneur in Turkey.

In Turkey, UNHCR is providing monthly cash assistance to particularly vulnerable refugees at risk, who are not covered through other cash assistance schemes, including survivors of sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV), thanks to EU Humanitarian Aid and other donors. 

In this interview, Marco Rotunno talks about why communicating with refugees is an essential component of UNHCR’s work in Turkey and the significance of digital tools – which are supported by the EU and other donors – to engage with refugees and asylum-seekers, especially in the time of COVID-19.

In collaboration with the Union of Turkish Bar Associations [UTBA] and UNHCR, three legal clinics in Şanlıurfa, Gaziantep and Hatay work to deliver legal assistance to refugees and asylum-seekers.

“This semester at university has gone by so fast and I am learning a lot from  this dynamic environment” says Linas, a 22-year-old Syrian DAFI scholarship student who currently studies architecture at a university in Ankara.

“Access to education can be one of the greatest ways to help you thrive, especially when you have peers who are supportive towards you” says Zahra, who is a 15-year-old Iraqi refugee living with her family in Samsun.

After fleeing Aleppo in 2013, Sidra’s dream of studying dentistry became a reality thanks to her own determination and Turkey’s support for refugee higher education.

Interviewing refugees for resettlement has helped Helen to better understand the reasons why refugees are uprooted from their homes and the challenges they face on a day-to-day basis.

“This city has changed my perspective and has been an inspiration for my art. I would like to thank all who supported me and gave me the chance to spread love, peace, and culture through art,” says Iraqi artist, Majed Al Abedi, as he opens his third exhibition at the UNHCR-supported ASAM Centre in Istanbul.

When I arrive to meet Selma at the location in Mardin, I thank her for her time and for missing her guitar lesson to meet with me.

Syrian refugee Nada struggled to find books in Arabic when she came to Turkey, so she set up a library that offers other refugees an affordable way to read.

Teenager Mohammed Kteish dreamt of becoming an architect as he was growing up in the Syrian city of Aleppo.

Ilham, a 22-year Somali refugee living in Turkey, is an inspiring young woman. After overcoming many difficulties as a child, she is on her way to fulfilling her dream of having a career in radio and television.

Help launched today and accessible at http://help.unhcr.org/turkey will serve as UNHCR’s online interface for information intended for asylum-seekers and refugees in Turkey.

Amira fled her hometown in the Aleppo region in March 2015, embarking on a long journey that took her and her two children to Istanbul.

This is the story of Barat, who escaped war in Afghanistan and -with an unexpected health issue- ended up with a struggle of his own in Turkey.

A bomb killed her mother in the family’s café in Aleppo. Now Fatima is studying civil engineering with ambitions to move further up the academic ladder.

A Turkish entrepreneur provides Syrian refugees with shelter and food, and helps them clear the bureaucratic hurdles to obtain work permits.

Four million Syrians have registered as refugees. Ivra, a teenage girl who fled to Turkey, gives voice to their loss.

A Syrian family from Raqqa flee again and again, driven out by conflict but drawn back by the pull of their beloved homeland.

Faysal thought that the conflict plaguing Syria since March 2011 had bypassed his home in the north, so he was stunned when the whirlwind of violence came recently to Kobane (Ayn al-Arab).

Hamide, who is 36 years old and a mother of 7 children, tells us, “I can’t describe my feelings, my 6 children became refugees, but my 7th child was born as a refugee…

A group of about 40 women in Adıyaman camp find a way to occupy their time, making carpets under a project set up and sponsored by the camp management.

Since arriving in Urfa, Abdul Rahman has learnt Turkish and is looking for work. But when he tells people he is Syrian, they say there is no job.

Quai Branly Museum collects toys from French students, packs them into 60 boxes and sends them to Syrian children in Turkey with the help of UNHCR and others.

UNHCR teams are present on a regular basis in all the refugee camps and provide technical assistance to the Turkish authorities on all protection-related concerns.