UNITED NATIONS (Sputnik) — The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) should take action to ensure safe passage for Palestinians trapped in the Yarmouk refugee camp in Syria, Palestinian ambassador to the UN, Riyad Mansou, said Monday.
Earlier on Monday, UNSC held an emergency meeting devoted to the crisis at the Yarmouk camp, one of the biggest refugee camps in Syria. It is populated by Palestinians who are now trapped in the location and cannot be guaranteed safety because Yarmouk, located in Damascus, is currently under the control of the Islamic State (ISIL) terrorist group.
About 2,000 of the estimated 18,000 refugees in Yarmouk were able to flee to safety away from the camp on their own, Mansour added.
On Monday, the Palestinian nationals, angry with the ISIL rampage in Syria, gathered in front of the UN headquarters in Gaza City to demonstrate their support for those captured in the Yarmouk camp, media reported.
Last Friday, ISIL with the help of rebels from the Nusra Front, an al-Qaeda's affiliate in Syria, seized 90 percent of the Palestinian Yarmouk refugee camp. The extremists entered Yarmouk two days earlier and provoked clashes with other radical jihadist groups.
