Suleiman Briefs GCC Diplomats on Proposals to Share Syria Refugees Burden
President Michel Suleiman discussed on Saturday with Gulf Cooperation Council ambassadors Lebanon's suggestion to help it confront the influx of Syrian refugees, Baabda palace said.
The terse statement said the meeting, which was attended by caretaker Foreign Minister Adnan Mansour, tackled the proposals made by Lebanese authorities for the contribution of several states in sharing the burden of the refugees.
The diplomats promised to inform their respective governments about the proposals, the statement added.
The U.N. said Friday that a total of $3.8 billion is needed to help Syrian refugees who have spilled across the country's borders to escape fighting at home.
The figure for operations inside Syria was put at another $1.4 billion.
"If the fighting doesn't stop, we risk an explosion in the Middle East for which the international community is not prepared," U.N. refugee agency head Antonio Guterres told reporters.
"It is not only a matter of generosity but also of enlightened self-interest."
More than 94,000 people have been killed since the civil war began in March 2011 after President Bashar Assad's forces cracked down on protests against his regime, according to The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
The flood of refugees to Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey, Iraq and Egypt has also swelled to more than 1.5 million. Syria's pre-war population was estimated at about 22 million.
Guterres noted that Lebanon and Jordan in particular have borne the financial brunt of hosting about 500,000 Syrian refugees each.
Lebanon and Jordan have asked donors for $450 million and $380 million respectively.
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