Misery stalks displaced in the Iraqi desert:
Almelaf have a feature under the headline “Misery stalks displaced in the Iraki desert” the feature points out that of the 4 million Iraki refugees and displaced that the Internally displaced are often at greater risk than those who made it across the border. Quoting Andrew Harper they point out that because international agencies and organisations are no longer seen as neutral they cannot get access to governorates such as Diyala where the situation is bad. Although the situation in the camps is bad the report quotes residents of a camp outside Najaf which has more than 1000 residents living in tents, in temperatures around 50 degrees Celsius without access to clean water Rabih Torbay, vice president of Santa Monica, California-based International Medical Corps who operate in Irak points out many internal refugees stay with relatives and that while host communities and families so far have been able to cope that the situation is placing a huge strain on them and that soon the needs will outstrip the capacity.
A large number of the internally displaced persons come from Baghdad. IMC’s survey which they published this January (a copy of which you can get here the selected findings of which you can get here, and the executive summary to which you can get here *) points out further that one effect of the large numbers of people fleeing from Baghdad is to not only depopulate the city but to deepen divisions within it. Said Hisham Hassan Iraqi spokesman for the International Committee of the Red Cross is quoted as saying:
“what they need the most is water with the onset of the summer … we believe it may cause some serious problems in the future.”
* IMC Contact Details:
IMC Headquarters
1919 Santa Monica Blvd. Suite 400, Santa Monica, CA 90404
T. 310.826.7800 F. 310.442.6622
Press Contact person for the January report is:
Tyler Marshall tmarshall@imcworldwide.org 202-828-5155
Homepage – http://www.imcworldwide.org/ Irak Page: Iraq
Their later feature article is here: In Exchange for Security, Iraqi Refugees Face Poverty and Lack of Opportunity (May 11, 2007)
* IMC Contact Details:
IMC Headquarters
1919 Santa Monica Blvd. Suite 400, Santa Monica, CA 90404
T. 310.826.7800 F. 310.442.6622
Press Contact person for the January report is:
Tyler Marshall tmarshall@imcworldwide.org 202-828-5155
Homepage – http://www.imcworldwide.org/ Irak Page: Iraq
Their latest feature article is here:
“In Exchange for Security, Iraqi Refugees Face Poverty and Lack of Opportunity (May 11, 2007)
When an assessment team from International Medical Corps came to the door of Um Mohammed’s house last month, hoping to interview her about how she and her family are coping with living in exile in Jordan, she was reluctant to pull back the worn checked cloth that covered the doorway. The 28-year-old mother of two feared that the team was investigating her family’s legal status in the country. Like many Iraqi refugees, they are living illegally in Jordan.
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