Syria plunged into darkness by war; 83 percent of lights have gone out
About 97 percent of lights are out in Aleppo.
By Andrew V. Pestano | March 12, 2015 at 3:38 PM
Satellite imagery of Syria showing the reduction of electricity between February 2011 and December 2014. Graphic Courtesy #WithSyria/Wuhan University
http://cdnph.upi.com/sv/em/upi/UPI-1641426184691/2015/1/d1384dd83e8910cdee8c38da7b7f18fc/Syria-plunged-into-darkness-by-war-83-percent-of-lights-have-gone-out.jpg Aleppo has been ravaged by the ongoing conflict. Syrian President Bashar al'Assad has been accused of war crimes stemming from issues such as the use of barrel bombs on civilians. File Photo by SANA/UPI
DAMASCUS, Syria, March 12 (UPI) -- Satellite images released by the #WithSyria global humanitarian coalition show that about 83 percent of lights in Syria have gone out since the conflict began nearly four years ago.
The #WithSyria coalition is made up of members including Amnesty International, the United Nations, the U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants, Oxfam International and about 130 non-governmental organizations.
The satellite images were analyzed by scientists at Wuhan University in China. The fourth-year anniversary of the conflict in Syria is on March 15.
"Dear World Leaders: Four years since it began, the Syrian crisis continues to deepen, and the human suffering is greater than ever before," #WithSyria states on its website. "Satellite images show that 83% of Syria's lights have gone out over the last four years – plunging streets, homes, schools and hospitals into darkness, and gradually extinguishing hope."
The study found that about 97 percent of lights were out in Aleppo and 35 percent were out in the capital of Damascus.
More 200,000 people have died in the conflict and about 10 million have fled their homes, according to the coalition.
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