Iraqi, Syrian tensions rise over Iraqi refugees in Syria

Jan 20, 2010, 11:00 GMT

Damascus/Cairo - Iraq and Syria are in a public disagreement about the number of Iraqi refugees in Syria - with Iraq reporting 206,000 people while Syria maintained a figure of 1.5 million, regional daily Al-Hayat reported Wednesday.

Iraqi Minister of Displacement and Migration Abdelsamad Rahman Sultan said: 'The latest statistics by the ministry indicate that there are only 206,000 Iraqi refugees in Syria,' in a statement released by the government on Tuesday, but reported Wednesday.

The minister's statement was a response to Syrian Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal al Meqdad's earlier announcement that there are over 1.5 million Iraqi refugees in Syria.

Al Meqdad accused the Iraqi government of neglecting to provide assistance to the refugees in Syria on Monday.

'Despite its large resources, the Iraqi government has only contributed 15 million US dollars to the support of its citizens in Syria,' Al Meqdad said.

He also stated that relations between the two countries were unlikely to improve until Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri Al Maliki's government is replaced with one more friendly to Damascus.

Iraqi parliamentary elections are scheduled for March 7.

The Iraqi National Accord, led by former Prime Minister Iyad Allawi, said the Iraqi government was 'attempting to nullify the votes of refugees in Syria or tamper with them,' Al Hayat reported.

The Accord considers the Iraqi Ministry's estimate to be 'inaccurate and politically motivated.'

The relationship between Syria and Iraq worsened last year when the Iraqi government accused Syria of assisting militants in Iraq, hosting terrorist training camps, and sheltering terrorist suspects.