Int’l response to Jordan’s needs for Syrian crisis does not exceed 4 per cent — Faraiah

AMMAN — The international community’s response to Jordan’s needs for the Syrian crisis for this year has not exceeded 4 per cent of the amount needed, Interior Minister Mazen Faraiah said on Sunday.

During a visit to the Directorate of Syrian Refugee Affairs on the occasion of World Refugee Day, Faraiah said that this figure requires regional and international efforts to prompt donors and international organisations to honour their pledges and provide the requirements for the residency of Syrian refugees so that the Kingdom can perform its humanitarian tasks towards refugees.

The minister noted that the Kingdom hosts more than 3.5 million refugees, exceeding 35 per cent of the Kingdom’s population, including some 1.36 million Syrians, of whom only 667,000 are registered at UNHCR, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

He said that the voluntary return is the best solution for all refugee crises, yet the number of returned Syrian refugees since the reopening of borders in October, 2018 did not exceed 50,000, which requires developing a comprehensive international plan to provide the requirements of Syrian refugees’ return to their country.

Jordan continues providing all services that refugees need, Faraiah said, stressing that the Kingdom is the first country in the region that provided equal right to receiving COVID-19 vaccines for Jordanians and non-Jordanian residents.

In this regard, the minister pointed out that some 20,000 Syrian refugees have been inoculated so far, adding that the vaccination campaign is still ongoing.

For his part, Brig. Gen. Tareq Azar, head of the directorate, delivered a briefing on its organisation structure, achievements and efforts to sustain services offered to refugees, in addition to the main challenges facing its personnel while conducting their humanitarian role, according to Petra.