One million Syrians have fled their homeland,
the head of the United Nations refugee agency today said, warning that in the
absence of a political solution, humanitarian workers need additional funds to
help the refugees and support the countries hosting them. ”With a million
people in flight, millions more displaced internally, and thousands of people
continuing to cross the border every day.
Syria is spiralling towards full-scale
disaster,” the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, António Guterres, said in a
press release.“We are doing everything we can to help, but the international
humanitarian response capacity is dangerously stretched. This tragedy has to be
stopped. ”The number of refugees increased dramatically since the start of the
year, with more than 400,000 people fleeing Syria to neighbouring countries –
Lebanon, Jordan, Turkey, Iraq and Egypt, and increasingly to North Africa and
Europe, according to figures reported by the UN refugee agency (UNHCR).“This
number translates into one million people who are dependent on the generosity
of host countries, the response of humanitarian agencies and the financial
support of governments and individuals,” said Mr. Guterres, who will be
travelling to the region later this week to visit UNHCR operations in Turkey,
Jordan, and Lebanon.
In Lebanon, the population has increased by as
much as 10 per cent. Jordan’s energy, water, health and education services are
being strained to the limit. Turkey has spent over $600 million setting up 17
refugee camps, with more under construction. Iraq, already stressed by a
population of one million internally displaced persons (IDPs), received over
100,000 Syrian refugees in the past year.