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WORLD NEWS Wednesday 12 december 2018

Russia says 114,000 Syrians returned home in 2018

By VLADIMIR ISHACHEN- national community con- in safety and dignity” said stacles to their return are support of Syrian President
KOV tinues to recognize the Amin Awad, the U.N. refu- removed. Those obstacles Bashar Assad, has pushed
SARAH EL DEEB plight of Syrian refugees gee agency director for include safety concerns for for the repatriation of refu-
Associated Press and provides vital support the Middle East and North those who have fled gov- gees. Russian and Syrian of-
MOSCOW (AP) — Nearly ficials have accused West-
114,000 Syrian refugees ern governments of block-
have returned home this ing the return of refugees
year, the Russian military and reconstruction aid to
said Tuesday, a mere frac- Syria.
tion of the nearly 6 million The U.S. and other Europe-
who have fled the country an nations have said return
since the start of the seven- of refugees must be volun-
year conflict. U.N. agencies tary, saying it is too early
said they need $5.5 billion in the course of the war to
in the coming year to sup- encourage refugees to go
port Syria’s neighbors host- home. Some say an inclu-
ing the refugees. sive political process is a
The U.N. said Tuesday that prerequisite for reconstruc-
Syria’s neighbors, Leba- tion funding.
non, Turkey, Jordan, Egypt The repatriations demon-
and Iraq, are hosting the strate that “the war is over
majority of the Syrian refu- and the country’s restora-
gees, while dealing with tion is proceeding at full
their own economic and pace,” said Russian Col.
social challenges. The U.N. Gen. Mikhail Mizintsev, who
refugee agency, UNHCR, added that over 177,000
however, said it has verified internally displaced people
only around 37,000 refu- have also returned to their
gees who have voluntarily In this June 5, 2014, file photo, a man rides a bicycle through a part of Homs, Syria, devastated by homes in 2018.
returned to Syria in 2018. the country’s civil war. The conflict, which began
The agency also said that Associated Press with a peaceful uprising
over the last eight years against Assad in 2011, has
around one million Syrian to host governments and Africa. ernment areas or military displaced half of Syria’s 23
children were born in the (U.N. agencies and NGO) Awad said the U.N. is pro- conscriptions, availability of million people, including an
region and registered as partners to help shoulder jecting that up to 250,000 services and other issues. estimated 5.6 million refu-
refugees. this massive burden, while refugees could be return- Russia, which has waged a gees living in neighboring
“It is critical that the inter- waiting for voluntary return ing to Syria next year if ob- military campaign in 2015 in countries.q