1/19Syrian refugees who fled the violence in Syria, are seen at a refugee camp in Arbil, about 350 km (220 miles) north of Baghdad August 16, 2013. Thousands of Syrian refugees poured into the Kurdistan region of northern Iraq on Thursday, taking advantage of
2/19Syrian refugees cross into Iraq at the Peshkhabour border point in Dahuk, August 20, 2013.
3/19Syrian refugees take a rest as they cross into Iraq at the Peshkhabour border point in Dahuk, August 20, 2013.
4/19Syrian refugees rest at a new refugee camp on the outskirts of the city of Arbil, in Iraq's Kurdistan region, August 20, 2013. The government of Iraqi Kurdistan has set an entry quota of 3,000 refugees a day to cope with an influx of Kurds fleeing the ci
5/19Syrian refugees who fled violence in Syria, are seen at a refugee camp in Arbil, about 350 km (220 miles) north of Baghdad August 16, 2013. Thousands of Syrian refugees poured into the Kurdistan region of northern Iraq on Thursday, taking advantage of a n
6/19syria
7/19Syrian refugee children try to amuse themselves at a camp near the Turkish border in August of last year.
8/19Syria Refugees
9/19Mideast Iraq Syria Refugees
10/19Free Syrian Army fighters take their positions as they try to locate snipers loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in Bab al-Nasr district in the old city of Aleppo, August 20, 2013.
11/19Free Syrian Army fighters sit at a checkpoint in the old city of Aleppo, August 20, 2013.
12/19A Free Syrian Army fighter rides a motorcycle along a damaged street, Deir al-Zor, August 19, 2013.
13/19A youth walks along a street filled with debris, as smoke rises after what activists said was a shelling by forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad, Deir al-Zor, August 19, 2013.
14/19A view of the new refugee camp on the outskirts of the city of Arbil, in Iraq's Kurdistan region, August 20, 2013. The government of Iraqi Kurdistan has set an entry quota of 3,000 refugees a day to cope with an influx of Kurds fleeing the civil war in Sy
15/19A Kurdish fighter from the Popular Protection Units (YPG) shows his weapon decorated with his party's flag, as a fellow fighter looks on in Aleppo's Sheikh Maqsoud neighbourhood, June 7, 2013. Kurdish fighters from the YPG joined the Free Syrian Army to f
16/19Lebanese Army investigators inspect at the site of a car bomb explosion in southern Beirut, August 16, 2013.
17/19Civilians clean debris from the streets in Deir al-Zor August 20, 2013. Picture taken August 20, 2013. REUTERS/Khalil Ashawi (SYRIA - Tags: CONFLICT POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTX12S4V
18/19A Syrian military soldier holds his Ak-47 with a sticker of Syrian President Bashar Assad and Arabic that reads, "Syria is fine," as he stands guard at a check point on Baghdad street, in Damascus, August 21, 2013.
19/19President Bashar al-Assad inaugurates a Euphrates River water project near Aleppo in January, 2008. Scientists claim Syria’s president mismanaged national water policy that lead to civil unrest.
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The United Nations' refugee agency says more than 30,000 Syrian refugees have crossed the border into northern Iraq in less than a week to escape violence in their homeland.
The agency says about 35,000 refugees, believed to be mainly Syrian Kurds, have entered Iraqi Kurdistan since last Thursday, including an estimated 5,100 on Tuesday, well above the limit of 3,000 refugees a day set by the government.
Officials with the U.N. refugee agency said Monday during a meeting in Baghdad that up to 100,000 Syrian refugees could be expected to flee to Iraq within the next month, if the current pace continued.
Fleeing bombardments and sectarian tensions in parts of northern Syria including Aleppo and Efrin, the refugees arrive exhausted, with many children dehydrated from walking in the scorching heat.
The new arrivals join nearly 2 million Syrians who already have found refuge abroad from the country's relentless carnage.
