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Lubna opens UAE camp for Syrian refugees in Jordan

Shaikha Lubna Al Qasimi, UAE Minister of Development and International Cooperation, described the condition of the Syrian refugees as a complex humanitarian crisis, calling for concerted efforts from the international community and its active humanitarian organisations to alleviate their suffering.

“The UAE humanitarian message is to improve the living conditions of refugees and those forcibly displaced from their homelands by wars regardless of their nationalities and religions,” Shaikha Lubna said while she officially opened the Mrajeeb Al Fhood, a fully serviced Emirati-Jordanian camp for Syrian refugees.

The UAE funded the camp, northeast of Jordanian capital of Amman, as the first phase of a five-phase facility that will totally cover 13,000 refugees with a total future capacity of 25,000. The Dh37-million first phase accommodates 5,000 refugees.

Shaikha Lubna undertook a tour of the camp during which she was accompanied by Jordanian ministers of social development and health along with top Emirati and Jordanian officials and representatives of Emirati, Jordanian, regional and international humanitarian organisations.

Shaikha Lubna conveyed the greetings of the leadership and people of the UAE to the Syrian brothers and sisters, assuring them of the UAE’s firm support during their ordeal.

She also paid tributes to King Abdullah of Jordan, and the government and people of Jordan for hosting and comforting the Syrian people. She also praised the UN organisations, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, other international organisations, and government and non-government agencies for supporting and coordinating relief efforts at the camp.

She said the camp, which supports other similar camps in Jordan, sets a model for constructive collaboration between the UAE and Jordan. “We hope the camp will help alleviate sufferings of the Syrian brothers,” she said, noting the Syrian people were passing through extraordinary circumstances.

Shaikha Lubna emphasised that the UAE would pursue its efforts to support refugees worldwide either through financial assistance or coordination and partnership with other international actors.

During her tour, the UAE minister got assured of the progress of learning process at the boys and girls’ schools. She was also briefed by the camp managers about their future emergency plans to receive more refugees.

At the Emirati-Jordanian field hospital, the minister was informed that more than 96,000 cases were screened. Doctors have also conducted 300 surgeries and treated 400 heart patients.

The Jordanian ministers of social development and health lauded the UAE’s consistent efforts to ease the suffering of the Syrian refugees and its tremendous support for establishing the camp.

The International Organisation for Migration thanked the UAE for establishing the camp and fitting it with the best services facilities as part of its efforts to ease suffering of Syrian refugees.