Armenian plane lands in Turkey for security check; 100,000 Syrian refugees in Turk camps
Monday, 15 October 2012
The number of Syrian refugees housed in camps in southern Turkey has exceeded 100,000. (Reuters)
An Armenian plane was forced to land in Turkey on Monday for security checks, the private NTV television network reported.
It was not immediately clear why the plane was ordered to land in the eastern province of Erzurum, according to AFP.
Armenia said the Syria-bound plane was carrying humanitarian aid and that its landing was pre-planned.
“The plane, which was carrying humanitarian cargo to Syria, made a pre-planned landing in Turkey. The landing in Turkey was previously agreed with the Turkish side,” Armenian foreign ministry spokesman Tigran Balaian told AFP.
Turkey forced down a Syrian airliner en route from Moscow last Wednesday and said it was carrying Russian munitions destined for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's military, infuriating Moscow and Damascus.
Meanwhile, the number of Syrian refugees housed in camps in southern Turkey has exceeded 100,000, the Turkish disaster management agency (AFAD) said on Monday, a level beyond which Ankara had previously said it would struggle to accommodate more.
It was not immediately clear why the plane was ordered to land in the eastern province of Erzurum, according to AFP.
Armenia said the Syria-bound plane was carrying humanitarian aid and that its landing was pre-planned.
“The plane, which was carrying humanitarian cargo to Syria, made a pre-planned landing in Turkey. The landing in Turkey was previously agreed with the Turkish side,” Armenian foreign ministry spokesman Tigran Balaian told AFP.
Turkey forced down a Syrian airliner en route from Moscow last Wednesday and said it was carrying Russian munitions destined for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's military, infuriating Moscow and Damascus.
Meanwhile, the number of Syrian refugees housed in camps in southern Turkey has exceeded 100,000, the Turkish disaster management agency (AFAD) said on Monday, a level beyond which Ankara had previously said it would struggle to accommodate more.
Turkey, which has taken on an
increasingly leading role in international opposition to Syrian
President Bashar al-Assad, has called already for the United Nations to
build refugee camps in a safe zone within Syria’s borders.
AFAD said in a statement there were now 100,363 Syrians at more than a dozen camps in Turkish provinces along the border, according to Reuters.
Tensions between Turkey and Syria have risen in the past two weeks because of cross-border shelling, and escalated on Oct. 10 when Ankara forced down a Syrian airliner en route from Moscow, accusing it of carrying Russian munitions for Assad's military.
Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said on Sunday Turkish air space had been closed to Syrian planes. Syria banned Turkish planes from flying over its territory on Saturday.
In an interview with German daily Die Welt, Turkey’s Europe minister Egemen Bagis said: “Europe should start thinking about the people who have fled Syria into Turkey.”
“Europe is in a state of paralysis. There is no progress because it is completely fixated on the euro crisis,” he added, referring to the three-year financial difficulties that have plunged many eurozone countries into recession.
Bagis spoke as EU finance ministers met in Luxembourg to ramp up pressure on Syria and also Iran over its disputed nuclear program.
In September, the European Commission announced an additional 50 million euros ($65 million) in humanitarian aid to help civilians caught up in the violence.
That brought the total available from the Commission to 119 million euros and the EU’s contribution in all to 200 million euros, or half of all international help offered at that point.
But Bagis demanded more, telling Die Welt: “Europe has to help people who need a safe haven. It's time for Europe to finally help out.”
The United Nations estimates that more than 2.5 million people have been affected by the fighting. There are more than 348,000 Syrian refugees registered in neighboring countries, but many more are unregistered.
AFAD said in a statement there were now 100,363 Syrians at more than a dozen camps in Turkish provinces along the border, according to Reuters.
Tensions between Turkey and Syria have risen in the past two weeks because of cross-border shelling, and escalated on Oct. 10 when Ankara forced down a Syrian airliner en route from Moscow, accusing it of carrying Russian munitions for Assad's military.
Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said on Sunday Turkish air space had been closed to Syrian planes. Syria banned Turkish planes from flying over its territory on Saturday.
In an interview with German daily Die Welt, Turkey’s Europe minister Egemen Bagis said: “Europe should start thinking about the people who have fled Syria into Turkey.”
“Europe is in a state of paralysis. There is no progress because it is completely fixated on the euro crisis,” he added, referring to the three-year financial difficulties that have plunged many eurozone countries into recession.
Bagis spoke as EU finance ministers met in Luxembourg to ramp up pressure on Syria and also Iran over its disputed nuclear program.
In September, the European Commission announced an additional 50 million euros ($65 million) in humanitarian aid to help civilians caught up in the violence.
That brought the total available from the Commission to 119 million euros and the EU’s contribution in all to 200 million euros, or half of all international help offered at that point.
But Bagis demanded more, telling Die Welt: “Europe has to help people who need a safe haven. It's time for Europe to finally help out.”
The United Nations estimates that more than 2.5 million people have been affected by the fighting. There are more than 348,000 Syrian refugees registered in neighboring countries, but many more are unregistered.
Labels: Conflict, Crisis Politics, Syria, Turkey
posted by Pieface | 9:15 AM
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