Casablanca - The ongoing civil war in Syria has forced many citizens to flee for their safety. Their flight is full of dangers, uncertainty, and fear. As Syrian refugees look for shelter and protection, it has become clear which countries support the homeless migrants and which countries have remained indifferent or limited.
Casablanca – The ongoing civil war in Syria has forced many citizens to flee for their safety. Their flight is full of dangers, uncertainty, and fear. As Syrian refugees look for shelter and protection, it has become clear which countries support the homeless migrants and which countries have remained indifferent or limited.
According to Time.com, more than four million Syrians have left their country. Not so long ago, the tragic death of Syrian toddler Aylan Kurdi put Europe’s refugees crisis in the spotlight. Pressured by the global response, Europe is taking more action towards housing refugees.
Since Germany currently has the largest share of Syrian refugees, Chancellor Angela Merkel is urging the other EU members to take in more refugees in order to prevent chaos.
Although countries like Sweden are showing similar resolve to Germany and are taking responsibility in the crisis, more help and a Europe-wide solution for hosting refugees is still needed.
The list* below shows an approximate overview of the numbers of Syrian refugees or offers asylum in each country.
Countries that have taken Syrian refugees:
Turkey: 1.9 million
Lebanon: 1.1 million
Jordan: 629,000
Iraq: 249,000
Egypt: 132,000
Countries that provide Syrian asylum requests:
Germany: 98,700
Sweden: 64,700
France: 6,700
United Kingdom: 7,000
Denmark: 11,300
Hungary: 18,800
According to the United Nations, these countries offer asylum:
5,500 in Spain
14,100 in the Netherlands,
18,600 in Austria,
8,300 in Switzerland
15,000 in Bulgaria,
2,143 in Italy
3,545 in Greece
North America:
United States: 1,500 resettlements
Canada: 10,000 resettlements
Other wealthy nations:
Australia: 12,000 resettlements
Equally important to note, according to Amnesty International, other high-income countries, such as Russia, Japan, Singapore, and South Korea have not offered any resettlement to the Syrians.
Gulf Countries:
According to the United Nations, the Gulf nations have been supporting Syrians financially, but have not taken any refugees.
Saudi Arabia: 0
United Arab Emirates: 0
Kuwait: 0
Qatar: 0
Bahrain: 0
The Gulf states are among the few countries of the world that haven’t participated in the 1951 United Nations treaty on refugees. Furthermore, the agreement reads that it is mainly the West’s job to provide asylum to refugees from anywhere in the world. Therefore, countries like Saudi Arabia cannot be legally forced to provide refuge. Regardless of this fact, people all around the world point their fingers at them due to the lack of humanity they have shown.
*Source of numbers by CNN
