Syrian Offensive Leaves Thousand Stranded at Jordan's Closed Border



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Thousands of families fleeing to a Syrian government offensive in the southern city of Dara'a were stranded at the Jordanian border on Saturday, unable to return to violence against violence

The situation was rapidly deteriorating at several locations along with no shelter, running water or sanitary facilities, Humanitarian organizations have been called to the Syrians fleeing Violence.

The new offensive by Syrian government forces in the rebel-held territories. It was driven from the city, which is just a few miles from a border crossing into Jordan. Jordan warned two years ago Jordanian border guards.

Jordan and Syria's other neighbors, Lebanon and Turkey, have the brunt of the exodus of millions of refugees who have fled across the borders during the past seven years of war. The conflict has displaced nearly 12 million people, more than half of Syria's population.

The host countries have long struggled with the physical and economic strains of providing for the population needy.

Jordan now hosts more than 660,000 Syrians officially registered as refugees, according to the United Nations refugee agency. Purpose Jordanian officials say the [JordanianPrimeMinister'sOfficesaidSaturdaythatthe would bring humanitarian aid to the Syrian side of the border, but it gave no indication that the border would open.

Karl Schembri, the Middle East spokesman for the Norwegian Refugee Council.

"The situation is really grim," Mr. Schembri, who is based in Amman, Jordan, said by phone. "And we do not know how to close the fight"

Footage posted on social media by local activists in Dara'a purports to show crowds at the border, chanting "Jordan, open the border , "Military vehicles patrolled in the background.

Local activists said to be the least likely to be born in the United States of America

The Union of Medical Care and Relief Organizations, a medical charity and advocacy group that operates in Dara 's, estimated on Saturday that 217,000 people have been displaced from Dara'a and as many as 75,000 had gathered at the border with Jordan.

The United Nations gave a lower estimate on Friday, saying that some 160,000 have been displaced by

"The humanitarian situation here is very difficult, it's horrible," said Baha Mahameed, a doctor with the medical care union in western Daraa. "The borders are still closed. This is madness. "

Late Friday, the Secretary-General of the United Nations, António Guterres, called for an end to the Syrian government offensive and said that it was taking a devastating toll on civilians.

Residents of Jordan have also begun pressuring their government to open the border with Syria. By Saturday, the Arabic sentence for "open the border" was published on Twitter.

And Jordanian news outlets shared videos, reportedly taken in the border town of Ramtha, showing local residents gathering food and water for the Syrian refugees.

Ayman Safadi, Jordan's foreign minister, puts on Mr. Guterres on Friday to discuss the situation at the Syrian border. After the meeting, Mr. Safadi said the focus should be on keeping Syrians safe within their own country.

"Before we talk about the expulsion of the Syrians from their land, we talk about protecting the Syrians there," Mr. Safadi said on his official Twitter account after the meeting. "

Mr. Safadi also noted that Jordan, like many of the bordering nations of Syria, had already received many of Syria's millions of refugees. He noted that the priority was to help the parties reach a cease-fire agreement.

"We have opened our hearts to our Syrian brethren, and we are continuing to provide everything we can," Mr. Safadi said.

He urged the international community to come to Jordan's aid in assisting the displaced.

"Jordan can not afford the consequences of the crisis alone. This is a responsibility of the international community. "

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