On the outskirts of Montevideo, locals gathered to welcome the first group of Syrian refugees to arrive in Uruguay.

Viviana Osimani lives nearby.

SOUNDBITE: Neighborhood Resident, Viviana Osimani saying (Spanish):

"It's exciting, beyond political parties I think it's an exemplary initiative that the government has taken and I'm very proud. I think these are people who have gone through things that we can't even imagine, so yes, I'm happy that they're here."

Forty-two refugees, many of them adolescents and children, traveled in a convoy of buses with a police escort.

The group of mostly Sunni Muslims will spend their first months here at this Catholic residence.

They're in Uruguay thanks to an initiative by President Jose Mujica who underscored the importance of helping the most vulnerable victims of war.

SOUNDBITE: Uruguayan President Jose Mujica saying (Spanish):

"We must insist that the world moves in this direction, we can't contin