Syria's Growing Refugee Crisis

Residents at Zataari refugee camp in Jordan line up outside the UN warehouse for toiletries and basic supplies. The white tents are now a distinctive shade of pink because of the desert storms. (Derek Stoffel/CBC)

UN: Syria Pushes Global Refugee Count Toward 21st-Century Record -- NBC/Reuters

GENEVA -- With tens of thousands fleeing Syria every month, the number of refugees worldwide in 2012 is set to be the highest this century, according to a senior United Nations official.

Antonio Guterres, the body's High Commissioner for Refugees, told his UNHCR agency's executive committee Monday that its ability to cope was being stretched to the limit.

"Already in 2011, as crisis after crisis unfolded, more than 800,000 people crossed borders in search of refuge -- an average of more than 2,000 refugees every day," the former Portuguese prime minister said.

That total had been the highest since the turn of the century "and so far this year more than 700,000 people have fled from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Mali, Sudan and Syria", Guterres said.

Read more ....

More News On Syria's Growing Refugee Crisis

Registered Syrian refugees in surrounding states triple in three months - UNHCR -- Alertnet/Reuters
Syrian refugee numbers 'have tripled since June' -- AFP
Syrian refugees in neighboring countries triple in three months -- Xinhuanet
Sand-whipped desert camps overflowing with Syrian refugees -- CBC
Riots erupt anew in refugee camp for Syrians in Jordan -- McClachy News/DPA
Most Jordanians say no to more Syrian refugees -- Christian Science Monitor