ARMENIAN AUTHORITIES THANKED FOR SHELTERING REFUGEES FROM LEBANON
ITAR-TASS, Russia
Aug. 21, 2006
YEREVAN, August 21 (Itar-Tass) — United Nations High Commissioner
for Refugees (UNHCR) Antonio Guterres thanked the Armenian government
for the effort to give shelter to refugees from Lebanon who had to
leave the country because of Israel’s recent military operations.
This applies to Lebanese of the Armenian and non-Armenian origin and
to citizens of other countries, Guterres said upon the conclusion of
the talks at the Armenian Foreign Ministry.
Guterres said cooperation with the Armenian government in assisting
refugees from Azerbaijan is excellent. He said the office of the
UNHCR is interested in peaceful solution of the Karabakh conflict.
Armenian Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanyan said Yerevan is satisfied
with the level of cooperation with the office of the UNHCR, which
gives vast assistance in integration of refugees and solution of
their problems.
Gagik Yeganyan, the chief of Armenia’s migration agency, said some
300,000 refugees from Azerbaijan stay in Armenia. Eighty percent of
them received Armenian citizenship. Yeganyan said the overwhelming
majority of refugees had been accommodated, specifically in hostels,
boarding houses and hotels.