Fact Sheet: Iraqi Refugees in Jordan and Syria

"We need international political will  to support UNHCR to relocate recognized and registered refugees to third countries." Mukhaimer Abu Jamous, Secretary General of the Ministry of Interior, Jordan, June 2007.

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Jordan

Jordan is generously hosting some 500,000- 700,000 Iraqi refugees in spite of its limited natural resources and small size. Iraqis now account for more than 10 percent of the total population. Between the Iraqi refugees and a long-standing population of Palestinians, Jordan now hosts the largest number of refugees, per capita, of any country on earth.

Iraqi refugees in Jordan face serious hardship. Although the vast majority are not confined in camps, most are denied legal status. The only way for Iraqis to obtain a Jordanian residency card is by placing more than US $100,000 on hold in a special account.

Without a residency card, the refugees do not have the right to work and most lack access to education and heath care. As a result, many refugees—even middle class professionals like judges and professors—have little ability to earn money to feed and house their families. The Jordanian government has deported a number of Iraqi refugees back to danger in Iraq, in violation of customary international law. In some cases the deported refugees had registered with the UNHCR and obtained asylum-seeker cards. In January of 2006, Jordan closed its borders to most Iraqi refugees.

Iraqi Refugees in Jordan and Syria - Quick facts

Total estimated number of Iraqi refugees in both countries	2.25 million
Who are Sunni	45%
Who are Shiite	25%
Who are Christian	20%
Who are Sabeans	5%
Who originate from Baghdad	50%

Figures based on those registered by the UNHCR.

 

Jordan – Quick Facts

Estimated number of Iraqi refugees in Jordan	750,000
Population of Jordan	5.7 million
Per capita equivalent in the U.S.	40 million refugees
Bilateral aid U.S. gave Jordan this year to help it host the refugees	$10 million
Bilateral aid the U.S. gave to Jordan in 2003 to ease the economic hardship caused by the war	$700 million
Estimated number of Iraqi refugees who are school-age children	200,000-250,000
Number enrolled in school	14,000

Syria

Syria currently hosts somewhere between 1.2 and 1.5 million Iraqi refugees—the number is hard to estimate in part because an additional 1-2 thousand Iraqis flee to Syria every day. Of the countries in the region, Syria has been the most open to Iraqis. The Iraqi refugees in Syria come from many different religions and sects and have mostly fled from major cities in Iraq.

In Syria, Iraqi refugees cannot legally work but they do have access to the public health service for primary and emergency care and can also visit Syrian Red Crescent Clinics specifically for refugees. Refugee children are given free access to Syrian schools. However, much of the refugee population cannot afford to pay for books and uniforms. International NGOs working in Syria have reported high levels of child labor and increasing prostitution among desperate refugees. The huge influx of Iraqi refugees has placed such a strain on the infrastructure in Damascus that in three of the neighborhoods that host refugees there is no longer safe drinking water.

Syria – Quick Facts

Estimated number of Iraqi refugees in Syria	1-1.5 million
Estimated unemployment among Iraqi men in Syria	55%
Estimated percent of Iraqi families who arrived without a breadwinner (*Many Iraqis flee when the head of the family is killed or injured.)	Roughly 1/3*
Amount Syria estimates it has spent on social services for Iraqi refugees	$162 million
Estimated number of school-age Iraqi children in Syria	350,000
Estimated number in school	30,000
Number of schools Syria would like to build to accommodate these new students	100