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50,000 Syrians on Jordan's border trapped in world power struggle

European and other officials are calling on Jordan to facilitate food transfers to Rukban, where some 50,000 displaced Syrians are being denied adequate aid.
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Stranded along Jordan’s northeastern border with Syria at Rukban for nearly two years, Mohammad Khader al-Mahya lives in misery. Some 50,000 Syrians live in a 3-year-old desert encampment, hundreds of miles from the nearest city and cut off from international aid workers in a closed military zone. The Jordanian government claims the camp has been infiltrated by the Islamic State (IS) and therefore has prohibited food deliveries to Rukban since June, causing prices on the black market to skyrocket.

Approximately 80% of the refugees at Rukban suffer from malnutrition, an Amman-based European ambassador told Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity. According to the envoy, conditions are so dire that some women are engaging in prostitution to survive. Inadequate health care and poor sanitation have led to the spread of hepatitis and severe respiratory infections, resulting in child deaths. Amid these horrific conditions, the Syrians are mired in place by an international power struggle and unable to receive the assistance they critically need.

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