What a giant new refugee camp looks like
Vehicles with officials arrive for the opening of the Azraq camp for Syrian refugees in the Jordanian desert.
Yesterday, GlobalPost's Meanwhile, in Syria blog mentioned the opening of a new camp for Syrian refugees, built to relieve pressure on the Zaatari camp, which is now the fourth-largest city in Jordan. The Azraq camp is at points 9 miles across and is 5.7 square miles in area.
Erecting a refugee camp of this size involves, essentially, building a mini city in the middle of the Jordanian desert. The camp requires a hospital, food sources, and access points and emergency exits through nearby roads. Here are some photos of Azraq's opening yesterday to give you a sense of the scale.
The story you just read is not locked behind a paywall because listeners and readers like you generously support our nonprofit newsroom. Now more than ever, we need your help to support our global reporting work and power the future of The World. Can we count on you?