Syria: Won't Force Iraqis to Return
By BASSEM MROUE, Associated Press Writer
3 hours ago
DAMASCUS, Syria - Syria will not force any Iraqi refugees to return to their homeland despite the exchange of harsh words between the two countries, the U.N. refugee chief said Thursday.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Antonio Guterres thanked Syria for absorbing a large number of Iraqis who fled the violence in their war-torn country.
Guterres spoke during a visit to a public clinic in Damascus' al-Sayda Zeinab suburb, where many Iraqi refugees live. Earlier in the day, he discussed the status of refugees with Syria's vice president, interior minister and deputy foreign minister.
Iraqis in Syria say they now get a 15-day permit to stay, after which they have to apply for a three-month permit that can be renewed once. After six months, if an Iraqi is not a student or does not have a business or a job, he or she has to leave the country for at least 30 days before being allowed back in again.
In the past, Iraqis needed only an exit stamp in their passports, and many drove to the border and re-entered the same day. No Syrian official has confirmed the measure pertaining to the 30-day stay outside Syria.
But Interior Minister Bassam Abdul-Majid said Iraqis would henceforth have to apply for an official resident permit after 15 days of entering Syria, the Syrian Arab News Agency reported Thursday.
The measure is meant to bring order to issuing residential permits for Iraqis, and help create an accurate count of refugees, Abdul-Majid said.
No Iraqis have been deported so far, he said.
Guterres described talks with Syrian leaders as "very open and frank."
They "were clearly saying that they consider these Iraqis as sisters and brothers and they will not be pushed or forced to go to Iraq. I think that is a very important statement," Guterres said.
Last week, Iraqi government spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh accused Syria of putting thousands of Iraqis in difficult conditions. He also said half the foreign insurgents in Iraq enter the country from Syria.
Guterres has also visited Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Jordan on a tour to push for assistance for the refugees.
Syria, with a population of 18 million, has some 800,000 Iraqi refugees and 500,000 Palestinians. The country also received about 1 million Lebanese refugees in the summer war between Israel and the Islamic militant Hezbollah last year.
