This is a summary of what was said by UNHCR spokesperson Ron Redmond - to
whom quoted text may be attributed - at the press briefing, on 3 August
2007, at the Palais des Nations in Geneva.
Following weeks of appeals for the urgent medical evacuation from Iraq of
seriously ill Palestinians - most of them children - we are pleased to
report that Syrian authorities on Wednesday allowed the first four into
Syria to receive much needed medical aid. The four patients - aged between 2
and 21 - are suffering from severe diabetes, paralysis, Hodgkins disease and
heart problems. They have been stranded in Al Waleed refugee camp on the
Iraqi side of the border for months without proper medical attention.
The four are now in very critical condition and we greatly appreciate this
decision by Syrian authorities. Two will be allowed to remain in Syria, with
some family members, while undergoing urgently needed medical care. The
other two will travel on to third countries, where they will receive more
specialized care. UNHCR on Wednesday transported the four cases to medical
facilities. We will be monitoring and funding the medical care, lodging and
rehabilitation process.
At least 16 other critical Palestinian cases still remain in Al Waleed camp
and Baghdad, where access to specialized medical care is impossible or such
care simply unavailable. They include a 3-year-old suffering from severe and
painful skin rash, a 1-year-old with serious urinary problems; a 2-year-old
suffering from cerebral palsy and several others. We continue our search for
urgent solutions to get these children out, as most of them might die or be
handicapped for life if they don't get proper care soon.
In the meantime, conditions in Al Waleed and Al Tanf border camps remain
dire for the more than 1,550 Palestinians stranded there. In recent weeks,
temperatures rose to nearly 50-C, making daily life nearly unbearable. UNHCR
has procured some 90 small fridges - one per family tent - and tent coolers.
UNHCR continues to appeal for urgent solutions for the Palestinians at the
border and in Baghdad - an estimated 15,000 - who are being targeted,
killed, kidnapped and threatened. They have no possibility to leave Iraq as
they are not accepted anywhere - unlike other persecuted Iraqis who can
still flee to neighboring countries and further afield. So far the response
of the world has been minimal and we remain extremely concerned about their
fate.
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