DUHOK
UN High Commissioner for Refugees Antonio Guterres and Executive Director of the United Nations World Food Programme Ertharin Cousin visited on Thursday Syrian refugees who had fled the civil war in Syria and currently reside in camps in northern Iraq.
Arriving at the Domiz camp by helicopter, Guterres and his companion Cousin were welcomed by the interior minister of the regional administration in the north of Iraq, Abdul Karim Sultan Sinjari and Duhok Governor Temel Kocer.
Guterres expressed his gratitude to the regional administration in northern Iraq for their support towards the refugees and added, "The regional government has shown a remarkable capacity to react, but we have no illusions that Iraq has enough problems of its own and this comes on top of that. So international solidarity is absolutely a must if we want borders to remain open."
Cousin also expressed her gratitute toward Iraq for taking care of its neighbours and said, "When we talk of war, we forget these people. Children make up 15 percent of this camp and there are many women as well. Our mutual work will resume with your government. We don't want a single child fleeing Syria to starve."
After Guterres and the accompanying delegation completed their visit in Domiz, they moved on to visit the Kawrgosk camp near Irbil.
An estimated 40,000 Syrians have streamed into the regional administration in north of Iraq since August 15 while there are around 160,000 refugees in nortehrn Iraq, according to UNHCR.
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