Syrian refugee crisis hits neighboring countries

After two years of civil war, the Syrian refugee crisis is reaching a boiling point. The United Nations estimates that 2.3 million Syrians are displaced within Syria and that another million have fled to Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey, Iraq and Egypt according to Daryl Byler, a Middle Eastern representative of the Mennonite Central Committee.

The refugees flee to escape violence, mayhem and lack of housing and infrastructure. In the case of women and girls, rampant rape by armed men is also a cause for flight. Over 75 percent of the Syrian refugees in Jordan are women and children. Many of the refugees have been traumatized as a result of the conflict.

The efforts of UN and other relief agencies are hampered greatly by chaotic political developments.