Syrians have 'no escape' from war

Syrians are increasingly unable to escape their country's war as tougher policies in potential host nations are preventing them from taking refuge in the region and beyond, a report said yesterday.
The report by the Norwegian Refugee Council and International Rescue Committee noted the "substantial and generous hospitality" of Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq and Turkey to accept three million Syrians.
But it said they were struggling to cope and had imposed stringent controls that have "dramatically" stemmed the inflow of refugees from the devastating war that broke out in 2011.
The report titled "No Escape" also criticised Western countries for failing to resettle an adequate number of Syrians stranded in the Middle East.
"In the context of increasing humanitarian needs within Syria and in neighbouring countries, legitimate national security concerns and insufficient international support, the formal and informal border crossings out of Syria are now effectively closed to men, women and children seeking safety," said the report.
In recent weeks, Lebanon has all but shut its frontiers to new refugees, allowing only humanitarian exceptions across, while Jordan and Turkey frequently place restrictions on their entry, it added.
In 2013, the United Nations estimated that an average of 150,000 refugees were registered each month leaving Syria.
"In October 2014, the figure was only 18,453, representing an 88-percent drop from the 2013 monthly average," said the report.
But the report criticised countries further afield, especially in the West, for failing to resettle some of the refugees to ease the burden on those near Syria.