UN alarmed by demonstration in Syrian refugee camp in Jordan

AMMAN // The United Nations said on Sunday it is alarmed at the “violent nature” of a demonstration in a massive Syrian refugee camp in Jordan that killed one person and wounded dozens.

Saturday’s deadly protest in the sprawling Zaatari camp reverberated around the region as international aid agencies and host governments struggle to cope and manage millions of Syrians who have fled the 3-year-old conflict and sought shelter in neighbouring Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey.

In a statement, the UN refugee agency said a “heated demonstration” in Zaatari turned to “a violent one” after possibly thousands of refugees started throwing rocks at a police post inside the camp. The protest started over a refugee family being held there after police detained them and a driver who tried to smuggle them out, the UNHCR said.

Police fired tear gas and there were reports of live ammunition being used, the statement said. Three Syrian refugees were sent to hospital with gunshot wounds and one has since died, the UNHCR said. The statement said 28 policemen were wounded in the protest. Nine tents and five mobile homes were burnt, the agency said.

“Tremendous efforts have been made over the past months to create an atmosphere of civility in the camp,” the UNHCR said, appealing to the Syrian refugee to “respect Jordanian law.”

Earlier, Jordanian police said in a statement that its troops used tear gas to break up crowds who attacked the police station and set fire to tents. Thousands of refugees fled the east side of the camp where the riots broke out, the statement said, adding that 29 policemen were injured.

Brig Gen Waddah Hmoud, director of Jordan’s Syrian refugee camps affairs department, said a 25-year-old Syrian was killed in the violence and at least two other refugees were wounded.

Jordan is home to 588,979 registered Syrians refugees, and the numbers grow daily.

Most of the Syrians are staying in two organised encampments near the northern border with Syria. With a population exceeding 120,000, Zaatari is the biggest camp. The refugees are under direct care of the UN and the Jordanian government. There are an undetermined number of unregistered refugees in Jordan, including many who have moved into the country’s towns and cities.

Meanwhile in Syria, rebels fighting to remove President Bashar Assad fired mortars into central Damascus, killing two people near the Opera House, state media said. Rebels around the capital have focused on hitting protected area housing government buildings to relieve pressure on opposition fighters facing a renewed offensive by Assad’s forces around Damascus, said an activist who uses the name Muaz Al Shami. He spoke over Skype.

Syrian state news agency SANA said other mortar shells hit nearby areas. On Saturday, mortar fire injured 22 people in the city. The British-based Observatory for Human Rights confirmed both days’ shelling.

Also on Sunday, at least 13 rebels died in a blast in the city of Homs in central Syria as they primed a car bomb for an attack, the Observatory said.

In the capital, meanwhile, two people were killed when mortar fire struck the Damascus Opera House.

The Observatory said at least 13 rebels were killed in the besieged Old City of Homs when a car bomb exploded.

“The death toll is likely to rise because there are dozens of people missing and body parts in the area of the blast.”

State news agency SANA also reported the blast, saying a car had exploded while being loaded with explosives.

The blast took place on the outskirts of the besieged Old City of Homs, which is under rebel control.

Some 1,400 civilians were able to leave the area this year under UN supervision, but an estimated 1,500 people remain until the army siege.

* Associated Press