12 people murdered at refugee camp in Syria – UN

Twelve people were murdered at the overcrowded al-Hol refugee camp in north-eastern Syria since the beginning of the year, according to United Nations figures.

Imran Riza, the UN’s resident coordinator and humanitarian coordinator for Syria, and Muhannad Hadi, regional humanitarian coordinator for the Syria crisis, expressed concerns over what they called deteriorating security conditions at al-Hol camp.

From Jan. 1 to Jan. 16, the UN received reports of the murders of 12 Syrian and Iraqi camp residents, including one female Iraqi refugee.

“Another person was critically injured in a violent attack,” the UN officials said in a statement late Thursday.

Circumstances of the reported murders were not clear.

Al-Hol camp is located in a region controlled by Syria’s Kurds.

It is the largest refugee camp in the civil war-torn country, with more than 60,000 people, according to UN figures.

More than 80 per cent of its inhabitants are women and children.

Aid agencies have long complained of inhumane conditions in the overcrowded camp.

“The recent rise in violence among the camp population not only represents a tragic loss of life, it also jeopardizes the ability for the UN and humanitarian partners to continue to safely deliver critical humanitarian assistance and services to residents,’’ the statement said.

Thousands of former supporters of the Islamic State terrorist militia, including German nationals, are also kept at al-Hol.

The UN reported in 2020 that several children had died there.

The reasons varied from complications as a result of malnutrition, diarrhea or internal bleeding.