20,000 Syrian refugees stranded on Jordan border

The number of Syrian refugees stranded on Jordan’s border and waiting for permission to enter has risen to 20,000, with 4,000 to 5,000 more arriving in the remote desert area every month, the head of the UN refugee agency in the kingdom says Sunday.

In recent months, Jordan has permitted only several dozen refugees to enter each day, leading to rapidly growing crowds of Syrians, including women and children, who are stuck in two areas along the Syrian-Jordanian border.

Jordanian authorities have cited security concerns for the bottle neck, saying many refugees come from areas controlled by the Islamic State group and need to undergo strict vetting. International aid officials have urged Jordan to speed up the process and move refugees quickly to the UN-run Azraq refugee camp which is still more than half empty and could house thousands of newcomers.

Andrew Harper, the refugee agency chief in Jordan, tells The Associated Press on Sunday that he is working with Jordanian officials to provide the “most basic necessities” to refugees stuck in the desert. It’s challenging because the nearest town is about 150 kilometers (more than 90 miles) away, Harper says. The UN understands the Jordanian security concerns, but is also working with local officials to try to expedite the vetting, he adds.

— AP