Interview: Palestinian refugees in Syria face hard times: UNRWA chief

The situation of the Palestinian refugees in Syria is critical amid insufficient assistance for the afflicted people, a UN official said on Wednesday.

In an interview with Xinhua, Pierre Krahenbuhl, head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA), said as the Syrian conflict is entering its fifth year, the energies and the resources needed to survive and overcome the suffering of the Palestinian refugees in Syria are being depleted.

"There is not enough assistance reaching the people. We have to do more, we have to mobilize more support, more money because the situation is becoming critical," he said, sending a message to the donor communities that "we need the support, we need to overcome many of the hardships that the people face."

Syria's 500,000 Palestinian refugees have tried to keep a distance from the violence that has stormed Syria, but the conflict did not spare them untouched.

After the rebels and jihadist groups stormed the Yarmouk Camp, the main camp for the Palestinian refugees in Syria, over two years ago, the Syrian troops laid a siege on that area, blocking most exits and entries, save for few aid convoys that succeeded to enter after a shaky truce took place last June.

Activists on social websites often share photos from inside Yarmouk, showing people looking like skeletons due to the hunger and illness.

Krahenbuhl pointed out that the suffering of the Palestinians in their camps is related to the presence of armed rebels, particularly after such militants have reportedly hindered the delivery of some of the aid convoys.

"There is a link between the presence of armed groups in the camps and the suffering that we see, and therefore my call has also been to the armed groups and armed actors to do much more, to preserve a space of safety, of respect for Palestine refugees, to not interrupt distributions when they take place. These are very important factors that have to be heard by the armed groups," he remarked.

Meanwhile, the UNRWA chief said he had discussed with officials of the Syrian government the importance of taking steps to ensure the safety of the Palestinians.

"I did raise with Syrian authorities the importance to take more steps, to ensure the safety of the Palestinian refugees and the respect for them."

Damascus-based Palestinian officials said 160,000 Palestinian refugees had fled Syria to nearby countries and Europe since the eruption of the Syrian conflict nearly four years ago and a total of 2,644 others were killed during the same period.

Most of the Palestinian refugees fled to Syria in 1948 following the establishment of Israel. They came from northern Palestine, namely the cities of Safad, Haifa, Acre, Tiberias, and Nazareth. Endit