Jordan admits hosting 100 Syrian deserters

Amman: Jordan's foreign minister says 100 Syrian military and police deserters have taken refuge in the kingdom throughout the eight-month uprising in their country.

Nasser Judeh's remarks yesterday were the first official public confirmation that Jordan hosts Syrian defectors.

In September, officials said privately that Jordan had received 60 Syrian army and police deserters, who ranged in rank from corporal to colonel.

Conscripts

Judeh said the Syrian soldiers and policemen, whom he claimed were conscripts rather than officers, had arrived in batches over the last eight months.

Many Syrians fleeing President Bashar Al Assad's crackdown have also sought refuge in neighbouring Turkey.