Some 150,000 Palestinian refugees in four camps on the outskirts of Damascus face severe threats due to ongoing fighting in the Syrian conflict, a PLO official said Thursday.
“We are deeply concerned about refugees in Khan al-Sheikh camp, which is the closest to ongoing fighting between the Syrian army, rebels and the al-Nusra Front," Ahmad Majdalani, a PLO Executive Committee member, said.
"Refugees from Danoun, Mirjan and Sayyida Zeinab are all within range of the ongoing events,” he added.
The majority of Palestinians in those camps are originally from Yarmouk refugee camp, which has been on the front-line of the Syrian conflict and severely affected by fighting.
Around 7,000 Palestinian refugees remain in Yarmouk, Majdalani said, with the situation there growing "worse and worse."
The PLO official said that refugees in Ein el-Hilweh camp in Lebanon are also under threat due to fighting between Salafist groups, the Lebanese army, and Hezbollah, with several groups trying to involve refugees in the fighting.
Yarmouk, in southern Damascus, was once a thriving neighborhood home to some 160,000 residents, both Syrians and Palestinians.
But the camp has been ravaged by Syria's conflict, with a government siege and fighting between regime and rebel forces making life inside virtually unlivable for residents.
