Refugee Aid

According to Amnesty International, affluent nations have taken in a "pitiful" number of the million of Syrian refugees uprooted by the country's civil war, placing the burden on Syria's ill-equipped neighbours. "Around 3.8 million refugees from Syria are being hosted in five main countries within the region: Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq and Egypt," Amnesty International said in the statement. The refugees face poverty, illness and growing tensions with host communities in their already-impoverished temporary homes.

Meanwhile, the European Union as a whole, excluding Germany, has pledged to take in only 0.17 percent of refugees residing in countries bordering Syria. Russia, China and the Gulf Arab states had not offered a single location for resettlement of refugees.

"The complete absence of resettlement pledges from the Gulf is particularly shameful. Linguistic and religious ties should place the Gulf states at the forefront of those offering safe shelter." said Sherif Elsayed-Ali, Amnesty International's head of refugee and migrants' rights. "Countries cannot ease their consciences with cash pay-outs then simply wash their hands of the matter," Ali said.