ATLANTIC

N.S. asking for more refugees, but minister can't say how many

THE CANADIAN PRESS Published Thursday, September 10, 2015 12:17PM ADT

Refugee children from Syria play outside the central registration center for refugees and asylum seekers LaGeSo (Landesamt fuer Gesundheit und Soziales - State Office for Health and Social Affairs) in Berlin, Germany, Wednesday, Sept. 9, 2015. (AP / Markus Schreiber)

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HALIFAX -- The Nova Scotia government says it willing to take more refugees from war-torn Syria, but it can't say how many more it can accommodate.

Immigration Minister Lena Metlege Diab says discussions to determine a specific number the province can handle are ongoing in her department and with settlement organizations.

But Diab says a final number would ultimately be determined by the federal government, which hasn't responded to her questions on the matter.

Last week the province donated $50,000 to the Syrian refugee relief effort after deputy premier Diana Whalen said the province was willing to do more.

The Immigration Department says Nova Scotia has received 360 refugees from all countries since the beginning of 2014, including 20 from Syria.