Over 150,000 Syrian refugees have fled to Egypt

CAIRO (AP) — The UN refugee agency says the number of Syrian refugees who have fled their country’s civil war to find shelter in Egypt has now topped 150,000 — a significant jump from last month’s figure of 95,000.

UNHCR’s Mohamed Dayri said Thursday that despite the “increasing spillover” into Egypt, only 4,800 Syrians have registered with the refugee agency in Cairo. He called on Egypt to help the agency deal with the “rising emergency” of Syrian refugees here.

Another UN official in Cairo, speaking on condition of anonymity because he wasn’t authorized to talk to the media, suggests Syria’s neighboring countries are “reaching saturation point” with refugees there, prompting an influx into Egypt, where living is cheaper.

The official says many Syrians live off their savings instead of registering with the UN.