2.8 million Syrians moved to GCC since start of civil war

UAE official tells UN discussion that more than 250,000 of those people have been welcomed to the UAE since 2011.

ABU DHABI // The GCC has taken in 2.8 million Syrians since the civil war began in their country four years ago.

Ahmed Al Jarmen, Assistant Foreign Minister for Political Affairs, told delegates at a United Nations meeting in New York that the GCC was careful not to treat the people arriving as refugees by finalising their legal conditions, so they could move freely and that residency procedures could be streamlined for those wishing to stay in the GCC countries.

The talks, organised by UN secretary general Ban Ki-moon, were about increasing international responses to the Syrian refugee crisis.

“Since the onset of the crisis in 2011, the UAE has welcomed more than 250,000 Syrian nationals, who enjoy full rights to free health care, education and work in accordance with the residency system in the country,” Mr Al Jarmen said, according to state news agency Wam.

The UAE had also contributed more than Dh2.2 billion in aid to Syrians in refugee camps, including the Mrajeeb Al Fhood camp in Jordan.

However, he said there was a pressing need to discuss the root causes of the refugee crisis.

In recent years, immigration and displacement has risen, forced by economic difficulties and conflicts caused by groups such as ISIL and Al Qaeda, Mr Al Jarmen said.

Dealing with the migration and asylum challenges should be based on the principle of addressing the causes – poverty, conflict and extremist violence – by committing to enhancing international development cooperation, Mr Al Jarmen said.

He called on the international community to shoulder the responsibility of protecting the affected people and provide emergency humanitarian relief to them, while also supporting their host countries.