Skip to main content

Iraqi Kurdistan Struggles With Influx of Syrian Refugees

Like other countries in the region struggling to take in the huge influx of Syrian refugees fleeing the war at home, the Kurdistan Region of Iraq has not received the international support needed to do so.
Syrian refugees, who fled violence in Syria, are seen at a new refugee camp on the outskirts of the city of Arbil, in Iraq's Kurdistan region, August 20, 2013.  The government of Iraqi Kurdistan has set an entry quota of 3,000 refugees a day to cope with an influx of Kurds fleeing the civil war in Syria, but there are signs many more are still coming in, aid agencies said on Tuesday.  REUTERS/Thaier al-Sudani (IRAQ - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST SOCIETY IMMIGRATION) - RTX12RQY
Read in 

Between Aug. 10 and Aug. 20, more than 15,000 Syrian Kurdish refugees fled from Syrian Kurdish areas adjacent to the Iraqi border to the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. This is after the fighting in Syria intensified, and those areas were subjected to attacks by terrorist groups and a blockade that disrupted citizens’ everday lives. 

The terrifying scene of the influx of refugees, the suffering that forced them to emigrate, the many routes they took to arrive in the Iraqi Kurdistan and the frightening stories about the level of violence in their areas are coupled with the suffering of the Kurdish region in northern Iraq, which has faced pressure greater than its capabilities to accommodate the growing numbers of refugees. 

Access the Middle East news and analysis you can trust

Join our community of Middle East readers to experience all of Al-Monitor, including 24/7 news, analyses, memos, reports and newsletters.

Subscribe

Only $100 per year.