First Lady Emine Erdogan of Turkey invited dozens Syrian refugees to dinner on a recent night as part of the daily fast breaking meal, Iftar, during Ramadan.

It was a warm and loving event and it stood in stark contrast to the cold and bureaucratic response that many countries have had to the refugee crisis.

Since Syria’s civil war broke out in 2011, around 400,000 people have died, more than 5 million refugees have fled the country, and another 6.6 million are internally displaced.

Turkey, which shares a long border with Syria, has taken in around 3 million refugees. The US, which is far larger than Turkey, has taken in around 10,000.

In Europe, meanwhile, the prospect of taking in refugees has caused pandemonium and arguably sparked the call for an independent Britain that resulted in last week’s shocking Brexit vote.

All throughout Europe, calls for closed borders have become widespread and refugees are routinely detained and deported to other countries.

Against this backdrop, Turkey has stepped up and shown tremendous generosity.

First Lady Erdogan’s gesture is just the latest sign that refugees are welcome in Turkey and the country recognizes and appreciates the scale of suffering that they are experiencing.

This doesn’t mean that Turkey is having an easy time with the influx of refugees, nor does it mean that all refugees in the country are living a good life.

The economy has been distorted by the influx and the rise of underground, unregulated work that has arisen because refugees often face work restrictions.

And many refugees and their families end up in dismal living conditions.

Regardless, Turkey is trying.

And the words used by Erdogan must be a heartening reminder that their future is not as precarious as it could be.

Rather than framing the refugee situation as a burden or as a threat, she referred to refugees as “guests” and said that the country will do everything it can to get children into schools and provide basic livelihoods for families.

As she said during event, “It is merely a matter of refugees for the West. For us, it is a matter of humanity.”

The event took on particular resonance for many of the refugees because it is Ramadan — a time for togetherness, patience and charity.