Notes

ZAATARI REFUGEE CAMP, Jordan — From a town of tents, the Mideast's largest camp for Syrian civil war refugees has grown into a bustling city.

What was empty desert just three years ago, the camp now has plans for water and sewage systems and a $20 million solar power plant. It even has ATM machines for refugees to get their aid payments.

But behind the plans is a cold reality for the 81,000 exiles living in the Zaatari Refugee Camp. Now in its fifth year, the war between the Syrian government and rebels will not be over anytime soon.

Some in the camp deal with that reality by making the best of life in exile.

Making The Best Of It Isn't Easy

A Zaatari high school senior, for instance, studied hard in cramped quarters to win a university scholarship. A former farmer planted a garden because he was tired of looking at the desert.

Dozens of others leave every week to go back to Syria, saying it is better to risk death than live in Zaatari. Jobs are few, one-third of children do not attend school and thousands of young adults lack the chance to learn a trade.

"As time passes, yes, we can deal with the infrastructure," camp boss Hovig Etyemezian said. However, Etyemezian said he is "a long way from being confident" that enough is being done to save this generation of refugees.

Zaatari, which began on July 28, 2012, is now the ninth-biggest city in Jordan. Today, the tiny Jordanian kingdom hosts 629,000 Syrian refugees, out of a regional total of more than 4 million. More than 100,000 live in camps in Jordan, including 20,000 in the newer Azraq refugee camp, while the rest struggle to survive in cities with cash and food from the United Nations.

International agencies such as the United Nations had to reduce aid amid severe money shortages and additional cuts were announced July 31. Refugees who live in cities could soon face the hard choice of moving into a camp where life is cheaper — only Azraq is taking newcomers — or returning to Syria.