Turkish warplanes have begun attacking northeastern Syria, causing widespread panic among Christian and other religious communities caught up in the aerial bombardments.

"Of course, we are frightened to return. What are we going back to? The houses and churches have been bombed."

Aid groups fear they may be overwhelmed by the sheer numbers involved.

"A child less than 10 years old ran to me shouting, 'Sir, please put my arm back.' His left arm was amputated and he held it with his right hand."

"I have never seen such wonderful program like theirs," a student's mother said.

"Our collective unwillingness to prevent or prepare adequately for disasters is a systemic moral failure."

"A new and disturbing pattern of violations against children's rights has emerged in the conflict" as youngsters have been killed and maimed, boys under age 15 have been forced into active combat, while still others have been exposed to siege and starvation.

The Canadian target of accepting 25,000 Syrian refugees by late February "is well in hand, and we should meet it with no problem," Bruno Saccomani, Canadian ambassador to Jordan, said. "That includes privately sponsored and government-sponsored Syrian refugees."

Greece is bracing for thousands more Syrians and other people to land on Lesbos and other key island crossings from Turkey, as those fleeing conflict remain undeterred by the worsening weather and colder autumn temperatures in their desperate search for safety in Europe.

Catholic aid agencies having been using various counseling techniques, even a live clown and puppets, to help the Gaza Strip's children overcome the trauma of lost loved ones and homes in the year since the cease-fire ended the conflict.