After two months of being stranded in the desert on the Iraq-Jordan border, 244 Palestinian refugees from Iraq who fled the Iraqi chaos fearing for their lives, have been able to take refuge in Syria.
They had hoped to enter Jordan, but the Jordanian government left them stranded for two months in the ‘no-mans-land’ between the Iraq and Jordan borders.
Nine buses carrying the refugees under the supervision of UNRWA and UNHCR crossed the Syrian borders and the refugees were received by a delegation from Hamas and head of Palestinian refugees’ authority in Syria Ali Mustafa.
Khaled Mishaal, the head of Hamas political office, welcomed the refugees in an address over the phone and praised the Syrian stand of support for the Palestinian people.
The Palestinian Prime Minister, Ismail Haniyya, also addressed the Palestinian refugees, who crossed the Syrian borders after strenuous efforts exerted by the Palestinian government to end their suffering. Haniyya reiterated the Palestinian government’s support for all Palestinian refugees around the world — which number over 3 million, and confirming his government’s support for their right to return.
