The UN on Friday made a fresh appeal for 5 billion dollars to aid Syrians in their country and the region this year, in what amounted to the largest humanitarian fund drive in history, dpa reported.
The number of Syrian refugees are expected to more than double to 3.45 million by the end of 2013, from 1.6 million at present, the office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said, adding that 6.8 million people in Syria would also need aid.
"Our support is a moral imperative, a matter of survival for hundreds of thousands of Syrian refugees and existential for the neighbouring countries," refugee High Commissioner Antonio Guterres said.