Germany slams inaction as refugees die on Syria-Jordan border

Germany has slammed interational inaction as tens of thousands of displaced Syrians continue to live in limbo on  a remote desert strip on the border with Jordan.

More than 75,000 Syrian refugees are trapped on the border with no medical assistance, little food and water, and inadequate shelter, with Jordan authorities refusing to assist the displaced.

Minister of Economic Cooperation and Development Gerd Mueller urged more countries to step up to help millions of Syrian refugees. He says "this appeal is especially directed at the Arab world, countries like Qatar".

Mueller spoke during a tour of German-funded projects for refugees in Jordan. Some 5 million Syrians have fled the civil war since 2011, most settling in Jordan, Turkey and Lebanon.

In June, Jordan sealed its border with Syria after a car bombing on the country's northern border. It left thousands of Syrians without regular access to food, water and medicine.

The proliferation of tents at the Rukban camp in September 2016 [copyright Airbus, source: UNOSAT-UNITAR]

Mueller said their plight "is a scandal" and that the world has to help them.

On Tuesday, a baby in the makeshift camp died as a result of a lack of health care.  

"The baby died in the al-Rukban camp shortly after the mother gave birth due to a lack of medical care in the camp, mainly inhabited by those displaced from Palmyra and east Syria," Khaled al-Homsi, media activist, told The New Arab.

"The humanitarian situation is very bad, the situation of children in particular is very bad. We have drinking water but hardly any food or milk," said Abu Mohammed, a refugee at the camp.

"Many people have died… They distributed just rice and lentils and a kilo of dried dates, but that was all for a whole month, they gave us nothing but that. The mood among the people in Rukban is below zero."

Agencies contributed to this story.