Jordan opens camp to deal with more Syrian refugees

DHAKA: Jordan braced for an expected new influx of refugees from the fighting in Syria by opening a camp with 2,000 tents to accommodate them near the border.

Diplomats say around 115,000 Syrians have fled their country, mostly to Turkey, Lebanon and Jordan, to escape the 17-month rebellion against President Bashar Assad.

The Jordanian authorities say around 130,000 Syrians have come to Jordan since the uprising began, but diplomats say not all of them are classified as refugees, reports The Jerusalem Post.

`We can only expect that more people will be coming across, more people who will be in need of assistance,` Andrew Harper, representative for the United Nations Higher Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Jordan, said at the camp`s opening.

BDST: 0141 HRS, JUL 30, 2012
Edited by Robab Rosan, Cultural Affairs Editor