Two clinics for Iraqi refugees open in Damascus

Two health centres were opened Thursday in the suburbs of Damascus to cope with the increasing number of Iraqi refugees in Syria, a press release by the United Nations Higher Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said. One of the clinics, financed by the French government and the UNHCR with the support of the French Red Cross (FRC) and the Syrian Red Crescent (SRC), was opened in presence of the French ambassador to Damascus. "Due to the semi-continuous influx of Iraqis fleeing war and insecurity in their country, the FRC and the SRC have decided to ... increase the relief capabilities in this area ... and to submit more appropriate health services," the statement said. The UNHCR representative in Syria said the project was "a very good example of other initiatives that should be taken." SRC chief Abdul-Rahman al-Attar said that provisions for Iraqi refugees in Syria were insufficient. More than 1.5 million Iraqis live in Syria, 50 per cent of them in Damascus and its suburbs, al- Attar said. Syrian Information Minister Mohsen Bilal said Wednesday that Syria hosted as many as 2.2 million Iraqi refugees, a much higher figure than the official estimate of 1.5 million. dpa opc wjh