AP
A displaced Syrian woman cooks dinner as children play near Kafer Rouma, where families are living in ancient ruins after fleeing from the heavy fighting and shelling in the Idlib province countryside of Syria, Sept. 26, 2013.
Dozens of people have found shelter amid the cluster of lichen-covered ruins outside of Kafer Rouma, which are part of some 700 such ancient settlements that dot northwest Syria. The ancient buildings - usually houses, churches and baths - date from the 1st to the 7th century AD and were abandoned afterward as trade routes changed.
AP
A displaced Syrian girl walks upstairs from her family cave house near Kafer Rouma, Sept. 27, 2013.
Some two million people have fled Syria since the country's uprising against President Bashar Assad erupted in March 2011, according to the United Nations. Over that time, more than four million Syrians have been internally displaced within the country.
Narciso Contreras/AP
A displaced Syrian family near Kafer Rouma, amid ancient ruins used as temporary shelter by those families who have fled from the heavy fighting and shelling in the Idlib province countryside of Syria, Sept. 27, 2013.
The villagers moved their property from their old houses to the new ones. They brought with them what they could carry - pots and pans, stoves, torches, plastic tarps. Children scamper among the household goods and ancient stones.
AP
Displaced Syrian children walk at sunset near Kafer Rouma, Sept. 27, 2013.
The Syrian army has shelled the ruins from time to time, although no one was killed in the bombardment.
"We never thought we'd have to live with our families in old ruins and caves just to be safe," said one villager, Youssef Ismail.
AP
Displaced Syrian men and children gather around a water pipe at sunset near Kafer Rouma, Sept. 27, 2013.
AP
A displaced Syrian family passes the day near Kafer Rouma, in ancient ruins used as temporary shelter by those families who have fled from the heavy fighting and shelling in the Idlib province countryside of Syria, Sept. 27, 2013.
AP
Displaced Syrian women sit during sunset near Kafer Rouma, Sept. 26, 2013.
AP
Displaced Syrian women cook breakfast as children play near Kafer Rouma, Sept. 27, 2013.
AP
A displaced Syrian youth plays with his pet at sunset near Kafer Rouma, Sep. 26, 2013.
AP
A displaced Syrian family poses for a photograph inside a cave near Kafer Rouma, Sept. 26, 2013.
AP
Displaced Syrian women walk in the yard of their families' stone house near Kafer Rouma, Sept. 27, 2013.
AP
A displaced Syrian family near Kafer Rouma, Sept. 27, 2013.
AP
Displaced Syrian men shave as a woman watches near Kafer Rouma, Sept. 26, 2013.
AP
A displaced Syrian woman cooks a meal for dinner at sunset near Kafer Rouma, Sept. 26, 2013.
AP
Displaced Syrian women cook a meal for breakfast as children play near Kafer Rouma, Sept. 27, 2013.
AP
A stone house near Kafer Rouma, Sept. 27, 2013.
