Coronavirus quarantine in Syria's northwest looks to shield most vulnerable

A man wearing protective gear sprays disinfectant at a quarantine centre, where those entering from Turkey are monitored as a preventive measure against the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in the town of Jisr al-Shughour in Idlib province, Syria April 30, 2020. Picture taken April 30, 2020. REUTERS/Khalil Ashawi

JISR AL-SHUGHOUR, Syria (Reuters) - At a quarantine centre in war-torn northern Syria, doctors near the Turkish frontier are providing a first line of defence to prevent the new coronavirus from spreading to one of the world's most vulnerable populations.

The centre was set up last month in the countryside of Jisr al Shughour, part of the last major pocket of the country still in rebel hands after nine years of war, where nearly a million people were driven from their homes this year.