Signs of the impending movements of Syrian asylum seekers to the Kurdistan Region started from March 2011, and have continued day after day since. There are as many as 223,113 Syrian refugees registered or awaiting registration by the UNHCR in the Kurdistan Region, as of 1 May 2014.

The refugees often arrived at these camps without any relevant documentation (they have a ‘family book’ at most) to be used to keep personal records. This created difficulties for the camps’ officials, not just in terms of reuniting families members separated by the conflict, but also in making an effective response targeted toward individual relief by meeting their exact needs, as there was no specific and reliable data upon which to depend (i.e. how many individuals were single, how many were married, levels of education, etc.).

Camp life is often bleak, but safe. While the KRG provides housing and meals in coordination with its partners, some refugees are not properly integrated. The paid jobs available for adults are lacking. Education for minors is inconsistent at times. Diseases and overcrowding can cause health problems. Sanitation is basic. The available resources in place are overstretched and simply are not adequate enough to look after the massive influx of people.

Refugees escaped from Syria to the Kurdistan Region of Iraq via the land route. Most of the families fled with all members together.

KRG officials observe that Syrians fled in order to escape the incessant fighting in Syrian and also because the war has so destroyed the Syrian economy that basic needs, such as food, water, and shelter, have become extremely difficult to secure. Young Kurdish men in cities with large non-Kurdish populations, such as Damascus, Aleppo, and elsewhere, have come under increasing security pressure and have been subjected to arrests, harassment, government army conscription, and murder by terrorist elements operating in Syria. Most refugees have come to the Kurdistan Region of Iraq because of the security and stability, the shared ethnic and linguistic ties among Kurds, and the opportunity for work and a better standard of living.