DIYARBAKIR - Kamel Morjane, the Assistant High Commissioner for Refugees, has said that they would assist Turkish citizens living in northern Iraq, to return to Turkey.
The nine-member United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) headed by Morjane, paid a visit to Governor Nusret Miroglu of southeastern province of Diyarbakir on Monday.
Following the meeting, Morjane told reporters that nearly 13 thousand Turkish citizens lived in northern part of Iraq.
Noting that there were 10 thousand Turkish citizens in Mahmur Camp and three thousand outside the camps, Morjane said that duty of the United Nations was to share with Turkish citizens the opportunities provided by the Turkish government.
Morjane said that they would assist Turkish citizens to return to their country if they were willing.
Stressing that it was not enough to take encouraging measures for return of Turkish citizens from northern Iraq to Turkey, Morjane said that those measures should be put into practice correctly.
He said that they would seek for a solution for those who did not want to return.
Meanwhile, Miroglu said in his part, ''some Turkish citizens migrated to northern part of Iraq ten years ago due to several reasons. Some of them applied us to return to Turkey following the war in Iraq.''
(UK) 17.11.2003