Prime Minister Stephen Harper said Friday that Canada will provide more aid to Syrian refugees, as well as provide additional funds to support international efforts to destroy Syria’s chemical weapons.
Harper, who is onthe final day of his Middle East trip, made the announcement during a tour of the Za'atari refugee camp in Jordan, about 12 kilometres from the Syrian border.
"The use of chemical weapons against Syrian civilians was an atrocity that cannot be allowed to happen again," Harper said.
The confirmed use of chemical weapons in the Damascus suburb of Ghouta on Aug. 21 killed hundreds of people, according to the U.S. government. The U.S. and Russia -- a staunch ally of Syria -- later reached agreement to eliminate the Assad regime's chemical weapons by mid-2014 in a deal that averted U.S. military strikes against Syria.
Harper said Canada will give $10 million to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, the global watchdog which is tasked with the disposal of chemical weapons declared by Syria.
Another $5 million will be given to the U.S. Department of Defence to support its effort to destroy priority chemicals on board a U.S. ship, the MV Cape Ray. Military officials will destroy the weapons in field stations on the ship, an approach that avoids potential diplomatic problems that could arise by disposing of the materials on any nation's soil.
The new funds are in addition to $2 million Canada gave to the OPCW in early 2013 to investigate alleged used of chemical weapons in Syria.
Harper also said the Canada will provide additional support to the 6.5 million Syrians who have been internally displaces, as well as to the 2.3 million who have fled the country due to the war.
Hesaid $150 million would be disbursed in 2014 for humanitarian needs in Syria and to help those who have fled to Jordan and other countries.
Canada will also provide funding to enable 1,500 teachers and coaches to use a play-based learning method in partnership with an organization called Right To Play.
“Canada's support will help ensure that children living in Jordanian communities hosting Syrian refugees have the opportunity to learn, play and succeed despite difficult circumstances," Harper said.
The prime minister added that Canada will do its best to ensure Syrian children "do not become a lost generation."
The Za'atari refugee camp, where Harper made the announcement, is now home to nearly 125,000 people, said a UN official who greeted the Prime Minister.
Harper said the reality is that the camp is just one of many now home to hundreds of thousands of Syrians.
"This is only one small piece of the refugee crisis." he said. "We sometimes forget these are all individual lives ... We are touched by this."
With files from The Canadian Press and The Associated Press
