Turkish couple drops wedding banquet to feed 4,000 Syrian refugees

A Turkish couple had a wedding to remember as they fed 4,000 Syrian refugees during their celebration. The bride and groom tied the knot in the city of Kilis, near the Syrian border, which has been flooded with refugees, fleeing the Syrian civil war.

Fethullah Uzumcuoglu and Esra Polat were the happy couple and they got the idea from the groom’s father Ali, who believed the pair could start their union by giving something back.

“I thought that sharing a big delicious dinner with our family and friends was unnecessary, knowing that there are so many people in need living next door,” he said, speaking to The Independent’s i100.co.uk.

“So I came up with this idea and shared it with my son. I’m very happy that he accepted it and they started their new happy journey with such a selfless action,” he added. 

The family were helped out by the charity Kimse Yok Mu, who provided a tuck to provide the food to the refugees. All the members of the wedding reception pitched in, to help serve the meals to those in need. Hatice Avci, a spokesman for the charity, said that the couple had used the money they had received from their families to pay for all the food. 

The bride was at first slightly surprised by the proposal by her now father-in-law, however, she soon came onboard and said it was a wonderful experience. 

“I’m happy that we had the opportunity to share our wedding meal with the people who are in real need,” Polat said.

All good couples think alike, and her thoughts were shared by her husband.

"We thought that on such a happy day, we would share the wedding party with our Syrian brothers and sisters. We thought this was best done with Kimse Yok Mu who could provide a truck. God willing, this will lead to others doing the same and giving food to our Syrian brothers and sisters. For us, it was an interesting wedding dinner,” Fethullah said, according to the Telegraph.

READ MORE: World's refugee population hits all-time high of 60mn, half of them children – UN 

As a result of the ongoing civil war, Syria now has the world’s largest number of displaced people, overtaking Afghanistan for the first time. There are a total of 7.6 million Syrians who have had to flee their homes, with 3.9 million living outside the country, a report by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) stated in June.