Syria allows US refugee vetting

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Syria has agreed to allow US officials into the country to vet refugees from the Iraq war for possible admission to the US, the state department says.

The move follows a visit to Damascus last month by senior US envoys.

Syria is currently providing shelter for up to 1.5m Iraqi refugees, but had been refusing visas to US personnel.

Tension is high between Washington and Damascus over allegations, which Syria denies, that it supports terrorism and is interfering in the Lebanese crisis.

The US, which has been criticised for accepting a relatively small number of Iraqi refugees, pledged last month to start taking in as many as 1,000 a month via new processing centres around the region.

State Department official David Welch said Washington appreciated the Syrian decision.

Campaigners for refugee rights welcomed the news and called for renewed effort to engage with countries neighbouring Iraq since the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003.

"We're very happy, but it really does draw attention to the need for a continuous high-level diplomatic presence in Syria and the rest of the region," said Jacob Kurtzer of Refugees International.

In addition to Syria, the UN refugee agency says there are 750,000 Iraqis in Jordan, 100,000 in Egypt, and another 300,000 in other countries in the region.