45,000 Flee Syria into Turkey from Islamic State Militants

UPDATE: Number of Syrian Kurds Seeking Asylum in Turkey Reaches 100,000 and Rising

Some 45,000 mainly Syrian Kurds have crossed into Turkey in the past 24 hours as the Islamic State militants advanced in northern Syria. Most fled the Kurdish town of Kobane. (BBC, 20 September)

ISIL has seized 60 villages around the town this week, and were expected to move into Kobane, Syria’s major Kurdish population center. The head of Syria’s Kurdish Democratic Union, Mohammad Saleh Muslim, has appeared for international assistance in the battle against the militants.

“Kobane is facing the fiercest and most barbaric attack in its history,” Muslim said. “the coming hours are decisive.” (Reuters, 20 September)

The capture of the town would give Islamic State control of a large strip of Syria’s northern border with Turkey.

UPDATE: Number of Syrian Kurds seeking asylum in Turkey reached 100,000, and rising. (Sunday, 21 September)

Photo credit: Syrian Kurds and other refugees crossing into Turkey for flee advancing Islamic State militants. (Reuters) 

2.1 Million Syrian Refugees - A Nation in Exile

The number of Syrian Refugees has now passed the 2.1 million mark – UNHCR

A nation in exile!

Image credit: UNHCR

Iran to Attend Kuwait Conference on Syrian Refugees

An Iranian delegation led by the country’s deputy foreign minister will attend the ‘International Humanitarian Pledging Conference for Syria’ in Kuwait.

Deputy Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian will attend the one-day conference in Kuwait City on Wednesday. The conference comes in response to the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s call for an international conference for donors to support the Syrian people during the time of crisis in the Arab country. The conference will be presided by Ban Ki-moon.

Photos:
Top: Syrian refugees make their way in flooded water at a temporary refugee camp, in the eastern Lebanese Town of Al-Faour. January 2013. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla, File) 
Bottom: Refugees coming from Syria wait to receive humanitarian aid on the Lebanon-Syria border. (Press TV)

Syria: Numbers and Locations of people fleeing internal violence--NO comment