Middle East News
US refugees official arrives in Damascus
Mar 11, 2007, 19:35 GMT
Damascus - US Assistant Secretary of State for Population, Refugees and Migration Ellen Sauerbrey arrived in Damascus Sunday to discuss with Syrian officials the issue of an estimated 1.5 million Iraqi refugees
Her visit is part of a three-nation tour also taking in Egypt and Jordan. The US embassy said Sauerbrey's five-day trip comes on behalf of the Secretary's Task Force on Displaced Iraqis and Iraqi Refugees.
She was to be joined by a senior official from the UN High Commission on Refugees, review efforts of international agencies and non-governmental organizations, and meet with government officials.
The Damascus office of the UNHCR says about 40,000 Iraqis are arriving in Syria each month.
Sauerbrey's visit comes a day after a landmark international meeting in Baghdad during which Syria, Iranian and US officials sat together on one negotiating table.
US President George W. Bush had previously rejected any direct talks with Syria and Iran, accusing both of facilitating the infiltration of fighters into Iraq. Both have repeatedly denied this.
© 2007 dpa - Deutsche Presse-AgenturCOMMENT
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Older Talkback
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...when we asked the UN to help with Iraq. This could have been avoided, if we had a real leader in the UN. Instead, we got Kofi.
'They come to western countries and their education is not honored and the become taxi drivers etc.'
You are a lunatic and I would be reticent to get into a cab with you, let alone give you any real responsibility. For heavens sake, go back to where everything was just dandy and your madrassah 'education' was honored.
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RefugeesMar 11th, 2007 - 20:21:40
The meeting must be for displacing more Iraqis and then where to put them? The shia have to be thinned out to change their majority to minority. We are dealing with Hizbullah also, The west grants them visas so easily. They come to western countries and their education is not honored and the become taxi drivers etc. So are the iraqis!
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