JORDAN TIMES

A German military aircraft flew more than 30 severely injured Syrian refugees from Amman to Germany on Monday, according to the German embassy to Jordan (Photo courtesy of the German embassy)

AMMAN — A specially equipped German military aircraft picked up more than 30 severely injured Syrian refugees from Amman on Monday to fly them to Germany for treatment, according to the German embassy and Agence France-Presse.

“The treatment of severely injured Syrian refugees puts tangible pressure on the Jordanian healthcare system. Germany wants to do its part for relief. The German government, therefore, has decided to bring some severely injured Syrians to Germany for treatment,” the embassy said in a statement.

The Syrians will be treated in different military hospitals in Germany, and the operation is financed by the German government, according to the statement.

The wounded Syrians will receive care at four army hospitals, including facilities in Berlin and Hamburg, AFP reported, quoting a ministry spokesperson.

“A team of German medical doctors and military staff arrived in Jordan two weeks ago. They prepared the mission and selected patients in different parts of the Kingdom, including Amman, Irbid and Zaatari. Jordanian authorities were closely involved in the operation right from the outset,” the embassy said.

“We are deeply affected by the thousands of dead and the still bigger number of wounded which the terrible civil war in Syria has claimed up to now,” Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle said in a statement, according to AFP.

“We want to enable a quick and as complete as possible recovery here in Germany for some of the worst injured victims of the war with the relief action now beginning.”

Syrian opposition chief Ahmed Moaz Al Khatib had requested the help for the patients currently hospitalised in Jordan, AFP reported.

“With this step, we are contributing to political support for the national coalition of Syrian opposition which is developing more and more for Syrians into a visible, credible alternative to the [Bashar] Assad regime,” Westerwelle said.

A ministry spokesperson said Germany might organise similar assistance in the future but no further flights were planned yet, AFP reported.

German support for Jordan in coping with the influx of Syrian refugees has exceeded JD50 million, the embassy statement said.

“The funds are used for a wide scope of measures with a number of implementing agencies, ranging from improving drinking water supply and establishing schools, to very tangible help like food items and heating ovens.

“With 125 million euros [around $163.5 million] for the whole region, Germany is one of the biggest donors helping host countries, Syrian refugees and internally displaced persons in Syria,” the statement said.

Last month, Germany said it was prepared to take in another 5,000 Syrian refugees in the coming months, which would bring the total to about 13,000 since the start of 2012, AFP reported.

The conflict in Syria, now in its third year, has claimed some 70,000 lives, according to the United Nations.