Jordan Establishes First Official Syrian Refugee Camp

July 29, 2012 from Al Jazeera English

As the Syrian conflict continues, more and more people are leaving their homes and seeking refuge abroad. Some just cross the borders, while others register officially as refugees. Jordanian officials have processed more than 150,000 refugees - the most of all of Syria's neighbors. To accomodate the influx of refugees the community can no longer absorb, Jordan has opened its first official refugee camp specifically for Syrians. Currently, the 2,000 tents will provide temporary housing to 10,000 refugees. However, if the crisis escalates, the government could expand the camp to shelter up to 113,000 Syrians. Al Jazeera's Nisreen el-Shamayleh reports from Zaatri, North Jordan.

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Refugee camp

A refugee camp is a temporary settlement built to receive refugees. Hundreds of thousands of people may live in any one single camp. Usually they are built and run by a government, the United Nations, or international organizations, or NGOs. Refugee camps are generally set up ... Explore this topic

Syria

Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south and Israel to the southwest. A country of fertile plains, high mountains and deserts, i... Explore this topic

Syrian Civil War

The Syrian civil war is an ongoing armed conflict in Syria between forces loyal to the Syrian Ba'ath Party government and those seeking to oust it. The conflict began on 15 March 2011, with popular demonstrations that grew nationwide by April 2011. These demonstrations were pa... Explore this topic

Jordan-Syria relations

Relations between neighbours Jordan and Syria have ancient roots as Jordan was historically the southern part of Syria. The two states were created after the First World War from former Ottoman dominions by way of a secret bilateral agreement between Britain and France. Explore this topic

Refugee

A refugee is a person who is outside their country of origin or habitual residence because they have suffered persecution on account of race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or because they are a member of a persecuted 'social group' or because they are fleeing natur... Explore this topic

Syrian people

The Syrian people are the inhabitants and citizens of the Syrian Arab Republic. While modern-day Syrians are commonly described as Arabs by virtue of their modern-day language and bonds to Arab culture and history, they are, in fact, largely a blend of the various Aramaic, Ara... Explore this topic

Jordan

Jordan, officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, is an Arab kingdom in the Middle East, on the East Bank of the River Jordan, and extending into the historic region of Palestine. Jordan borders Saudi Arabia to the south and east, Iraq to the north-east, Syria to the north a... Explore this topic

Foreign relations of Syria

Ensuring national security, increasing influence among its Arab neighbors, and achieving a comprehensive Arab-Israeli peace settlement, which includes the return of the Golan Heights, are the primary goals of President Bashar al-Assad's foreign policy. At many points in its hi... Explore this topic

Immigration

Immigration is the movement of people into a different country in order to settle there. Immigration is made for many reasons, including temperature, breeding, economic, political, family re-unification, natural disaster, poverty or the wish to change one's surroundings volunt... Explore this topic

Al Jazeera English

Al Jazeera English is an international 24-hour English-language news and current affairs TV channel headquartered in Doha, Qatar. It is the sister channel of the Arabic-language Al Jazeera. The station broadcasts news features and analysis, documentaries, live debates, current... Explore this topic

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