United Nations: The United Nations refugee agency has soughtincreased international support for States such as Jordanand Syria, which have made a'huge sacrifice' by hosting hundreds of thousands of refugees fleeing war-torn Iraq.

"A limited number of countries are paying a very heavy price for theprotection of these people in distress," UN High Commissioner for Refugees(UNHCR) Antsnio Guterres said at the end of a week-long trip to the Gulfregion.

"Describing the sacrifices made by these countries as remarkable," hesaid the international community needs to assume full responsibility supportingthem.

 UNHCR estimated thatapproximately 2 million Iraqis - between 500,000 to 1 million Iraqis in Syria;750,000 in Jordan; between 20,000 to 80,000 in Egypt; up to 40,000 in Lebanon;and several thousand in Turkey - have fled their homeland thus far.

While ensuring protection for Iraqis is necessary, Guterres said host countries'concerns regarding security must also be recognized and addressed.