The number of Syrian
refugees registered in Turkey has topped 30,000, a Turkish Foreign Ministry
official told AFP on Friday.
"Four hundred more
Syrians crossed into Turkey on Thursday, bringing the total number to
30,800," said the official, who wished to remain anonymous.
The refugees are
accommodated in Turkish Red Crescent camps in the southeastern provinces of
Hatay, Gaziantep, Sanliurfa and Kilis along the Syrian border.
The influx of refugees
comes as violence continues in Syria, particularly in northwestern villages
close to the border.
Turkish President Abdullah
Gul told reporters on Friday that "unfortunately the [current] situation
is the worst in Syria," adding that the peace plan proposed by international
mediator Kofi Annan appeared to have been sidelined by the regime.
Turkey's government has
repeatedly accused Damascus of playing for time by using Annan's peace plan as
a pretext.
World powers are groping to
find a way to end the bloodshed in Syria with the toll growing daily despite
the ceasefire that should have gone into effect from April 12, and there are
reports of children being used as human shields.
Monitoring groups say at
least 14,400 people have been killed in the 15-month uprising against the
regime of President Bashar al-Assad, and UN peacekeeping chief Herve Ladsous
said this week he believed Syria was now in a civil war.
Turkey, once a strong ally
of Syria, broke with Damascus after Assad's regime began cracking down on
dissent in March last year.
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