(MENAFN- The Journal Of Turkish Weekly) The U.S. on Friday joined international demands for an end to the worsening crisis in Syria's Yarmouk refugee camp.
The population of the Damascus-based Palestinian refugee camp dropped sharply during Syria's four-year long civil war from roughly 200,000 to less than 18,000, as residents fled fighting or were killed in ongoing hostilities.
Syrian government forces besieged the largest Palestinian refugee camp in Syria beginning in mid-2013. Roughly 166 Palestinians starved to death shortly after the siege began.
Daesh militants overran parts of the camp in early April, killing at least 27 Palestinians since last week, according to a Palestine Liberation Organization official. The seizure of parts of the camp marks the first time Daesh has been able to establish a foothold in the Syrian capital.
"Those Palestinian refugees living inside the camp are now caught between ISIL and the Syrian regime, which continues to indiscriminately attack civilians," said National Security Council spokeswoman Bernadette Meehan. "The siege of Yarmouk must be lifted and the safe evacuation of civilians must be allowed."
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said Thursday that the situation in Yarmouk is an "epic test" for the global community and that the camp "is beginning to resemble a death camp."
Meehan welcomed Ban's statement, and called on the Syrian government to end its "aerial bombardment in order to allow civilians to leave the camp."
The UN Security Council on Monday demanded humanitarian access to the camp to provide life-saving assistance and ensure the safe passage and evacuation of civilians.
Syria has been gripped by constant fighting since Syrian President Bashar al-Assad launched a violent crackdown in response to anti-government protests in March 2011, triggering a conflict that has killed more than 220,000, according to the UN.
"The terrible toll the war has taken on Syria's civilians underscores the urgent need for a political solution to end the fighting," Meehan said.
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