Social media users worldwide are addressing the reasons why Syrian refugees are fleeing westward rather than seeking safe haven in the Arab Persian Gulf states.
Business Insider reports that the hashtag #Hosting_Syria’s_refugees_is_a_Gulf_duty has become a trending forum on Twitter in which many Arabs are expressing their indignation over European states harboring thousands of refugees while the Gulf states take in next to none.
A recent tweet showed an image of a drowned refugee with the comment, ‘it is shameful that they have to roam all about God’s earth and drown in the seas while fleeing death when we are supposed to be closer to them than the West.”
https://twitter.com/khaledam12/status/637382825025474560?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Many European countries are being criticized for discriminating between Christians and Muslims and offering sanctuary to only a small number of refugees, reports The Washington Post. There seems to be a general dysfunction of Europe’s systems for migration and asylum, causing a lot of contention.
However, Saudi Arabia and other wealthy Arab states along the Persian Gulf – who should be doing more to help the refugees – seem to be escaping criticism.
The “six Gulf countries – Qatar, United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Oman and Bahrain – have offered zero resettlement places to Syrian refugees,” Amnesty International has pointed out.
Six Gulf countries – Qatar, United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Oman and Bahrain – have offered zero resettlement places to Syrian refugees.
Kenneth Roth, executive director of Human Rights Watch, has echoed this sentiment on his Twitter platform:
Guess how many of these Syrian refugees Saudi Arabia & other Gulf states offered to take?
0http://t.co/iY0ct3kXBW pic.twitter.com/JI3WTQhlxo
— Kenneth Roth (@KenRoth) September 2, 2015
The way that Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states aid Syrian refugees: pic.twitter.com/2i9gcGiRxe
— Kenneth Roth (@KenRoth) September 2, 2015
“The Gulf must realize that now is the time to change their policy regarding accepting refugees from the Syria crisis,” writes the columnist Qassemi. “It is the moral, ethical and responsible step to take.”
The Gulf must realize that now is the time to change their policy regarding accepting refugees from the Syria crisis. It is the moral, ethical and responsible step to take.
In other Syrian news, in late July, Al- Qaeda attacked the headquarters of a US-backed rebel group and captured their leader.
