UN chief urges countries to let in more Syrian refugees

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Wednesday urged governments around the world to let in more people from Syria and “counter fear-mongering” about refugees.

 

Ban spoke at a one-day conference in Geneva meant to further efforts to resettle Syrian refugees. The U.N. refugee agency wants to find places abroad over the next three years for one-tenth of the 4.8 million Syrian refugees who are crowded into countries in the surrounding region.

 

“I ask that countries act with solidarity, in the name of our shared humanity, by pledging new and additional pathways for the admission of Syrian refugees,” Ban told the gathering of officials from over 90 countries. “These pathways can include resettlement or humanitarian admission, family reunions, as well as labor or study opportunities.”

 

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