Turkey sets new border camps for Syrian refugees

Turkish aid workers have been setting up tents and distributing supplies for thousands of new Syrian refugees kept from entering Turkey at the border.

Some 35,000 people fled a Syrian government offensive in the Aleppo area last week, trying to enter Turkey's Kilis border region.

But Turkey has so far closed the border to most of them despite appeals by EU leaders to let them cross.

The country already shelters more than 2.5 million refugees from Syria's war.

Many Syrians have gone on to seek asylum in the EU and made up the largest group among more than one million refugees and other migrants who entered illegally last year, mainly by sea from Turkey.

In the past few days, the Syrian army - backed by Russian air strikes - has made a series of gains around Aleppo, Syria's largest city.

Aid officials at the Oncupinar border crossing told the Reuters news agency their efforts for now were focused on getting aid to the camps on the Syrian side of the border.

"We're extending our efforts inside Syria to supply shelter, food and medical assistance to people," an unnamed official from the Turkish Humanitarian Relief Foundation said.