UNRWA chief ‘very worried’ about civilians in Syria’s Yarmouk

UN agency head expresses deep concern over plight of Palestinian, Syrian refugees as Islamic State continues assault on camp

By AFP 12 April 2015, 4:52 pm
Residents of the besieged Yarmouk Palestinian refugee camp wait to leave the camp, on the southern edge of the Syrian capital Damascus, Syria, Feb. 4, 2014 (photo credit: AP/SANA)

DAMASCUS — A UN agency chief said Sunday he was deeply concerned for civilians stuck in a Damascus refugee camp after it was stormed by the extremist Islamic State group.

“We remain very worried for refugees and civilians inside Yarmouk. We are very determined to provide assistance to those who have decided temporarily to leave the camp and find shelter elsewhere,” said Pierre Krahenbuhl, who heads the UN agency for Palestinian refugees UNRWA.

On April 1, IS launched an assault on Yarmouk, which was once a vibrant home to 160,000 Palestinians as well as Syrians but now has fewer than 18,000 residents.

The camp has seen violent clashes between pro-regime and opposition forces since 2012, and has endured an intense army siege since 2013.

In this picture provided by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (Unrwa.org), two men on their wheelchairs, wait to receive food supplies at a damaged street in the besieged Yarmouk refugee camp, on the southern edge of the Syrian capital Damascus, Syria, Thursday April 24, 2014 (photo credit: AP)

Krahenbuhl spoke while visiting a school in the Tadamon neighborhood, where displaced Palestinians from Yarmouk have sought refuge.

He said UNRWA remained “determined” to bring aid to Palestinians who have fled to Yalda and Babila, two neighborhoods on the outskirts of Yarmouk.

Krahenbuhl said that since the “dramatic changes” brought about by IS’s assault on Yarmouk, “the focus is on how to provide assistance for people inside.”

“We are also thinking about how we can we improve the ability for people who wish to leave temporarily to come out safely and to receive assistance,” he said.

More than 200 people have been killed since the beginning of the government’s siege on Yarmouk, including dozens who died of hunger.

Krahenbuhl arrived in Damascus on Saturday on an “urgent mission” to discuss aid to civilians fleeing the violence in Yarmouk.

He was set to meet with Syrian government representatives as well as the UN’s deputy special envoy Ramzy Ezzeldin Ramzy.

Syria’s regime has said a “military operation” would be necessary to push IS out of Yarmouk.

But UNRWA said Krahenbuhl’s visit sought to find “peaceful approaches to addressing the humanitarian consequences of the situation.”

The UNRWA chief called for “clear respect for civilians inside Yarmouk” and for a safe passage that would allow them to seek aid outside of the camp.

According to Palestinian sources, some 2,500 civilians from Yarmouk have taken refuge in Damascus schools.

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