GUAM: MORE KURDISH REFUGEES EVACUATED FROM NORTHERN IRAQ ARRIVE

Описание: (19 Sep 1996) English/Nat

Hundreds more Kurdish refugees evacuated from Northern Iraq have arrived (Wednesday) at the U-S Pacific island of Guam.

The Kurds were air lifted from the south-eastern Turkish city of Diyarbakir and are expected to remain on the island for the next three months while their immigration applications are processed for entry to the United States.

Looking bewildered and tired the latest batch of Kurdish refugees from Northern Iraq landed at Anderson South Air Force Base on the island of Guam Wednesday night after a 19 hour flight from Turkey.

465 men, women and children carrying meagre belongings were taken to an airport hangar where they were allocated housing units.

They fled their homes in Northern Iraq and crossed the border in to Turkey fearing reprisals from pro-Saddam forces which have consolidated their power in the area.

The refugees have been classified as "U-S government employees and their families" while their immigration applications are processed.

With fifteen hundred refugees now staying at the base there has been a pressing need for extra supplies.

SOUNDBITE:
"One of the needs that we were informed about this morning, early this morning was that there was a need for diapers, bottles, pampers, formula and stuffed animals and toys for the 600 children who are arriving."
SUPER CAPTION: Captain Linda Harmon, Salvation Army

The U-S says most of the refugees want sanctuary in the United States and the vast majority are expected to be settled there.

It's a far cry from the life they have been used to.

The refugees are now crowded into 360 military homes and each person has to undergo a rigorous medical check.

There is little to do at the air force base situated in the Western Pacific.

The last refugee flight is expected to arrive on Saturday, bringing the total number of Kurds at the base to over two thousand.

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