Thousands of Palestinian refugees flee Syrian city

Yesterday in Washington, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said it was more effective to forge international consensus against Assad - as well as intensify economic pressure through sanctions - than for the United States alone to lead the way.

“It’s not going to be any news if the United States says Assad needs to go,’’ Clinton said at the National Defense University. “OK, fine, what’s next? If Turkey says it, if King Abdullah says it, if other people say it, there is no way the Assad regime can ignore it.’’

The UN Relief and Works Agency, which assists Palestinian refugees, said that it had no information on the whereabouts of the Latakia Palestinians. Activists have said many of the displaced have left for the countryside or Aleppo, Syrian’s second-largest city, to the northeast.

“A forgotten population has now become a disappeared population,’’ said Christopher Gunness, spokesman for the agency in Jerusalem, calling the situation “very, very worrying.’’

The refugee neighborhood, Raml, was set up after 1948, when Palestinians fled or were expelled from their homes during the fighting at the creation of Israel. It grew into one of the city’s largest neighborhoods, drawing poor job-seekers, but it still lacks some basic services. Demonstrations have erupted there and nearby since the country’s uprising began in March, and activists there insisted the crackdown would fail to quell the spirit of dissent.

“The residents in Raml will rally the same day the army pulls out,’’ said one resident, Ahmed Bogdash. “They are poor, and they have nothing to lose.’’

Gunness said forces had directed heavy fire into the neighborhood and that Syrian security officials had told some of the residents to leave, suggesting an impending military operation. By yesterday, Raml was “all but deserted,’’ he added, citing latest reports from what he described as a broad range of reliable sources.