BAGHDAD (Dispatches) – Iraqi President Abdul Latif Rashid has called on the United Nations to support Iraq and help alleviate the suffering of 600,000 internally displaced persons (IDPs) who live in harsh and complex conditions.
This came during a meeting with the Assistant Secretary-General and Director of the Regional Bureau for Arab States at the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Abdallah al-Dardari.
During the meeting, Rashid called for strengthening the existing relationship between Iraq and the United Nations through its specialized agencies, to resolve the problems related to the internally displaced persons and to promote the economy and development in the country.
He noted that no assistance has been provided to the IDPs on the ground, and called to end their file by returning them to their areas of residence.
For his part, al-Dardari reiterated the UN’s commitment to taking care of the marshes and other files, stressing that his next visit will include a new vision that depends on implementation and achievement.
He also reiterated the United Nations’ support for Iraq in the areas of water management, training, studies, energy and boosting investment.
According to UN OCHA, there are approximately 1.2 million internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Iraq and 4.1 million people in need of humanitarian assistance. Insecurity, lack of livelihoods and destroyed or damaged housing hamper people’s ability to return home.
Meanwhile, the International Committee of the Red Cross has said that there are about 16 million refugees in the Arab world due to ongoing conflicts. Regional spokeswoman for the ICRC, Imene Trabelsi, told Anadolu that the largest file in the area covers Syrian refugees, whose number exceeds five million, most of them in neighboring Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan and Iraq.
“Refugees in nearby countries, especially Lebanon and Jordan, live in additional fragility, because those countries are suffering from economic crises and internal difficulties, which makes their situation in these countries more difficult,” explained Trabelsi. “On World Refugee Day, 20 June, it must be noted that one of the great challenges is the wave of internal displacement in the Arab world, which is witnessing armed conflicts. In Syria alone, the number of [internally] displaced persons exceeds six million; inside Yemen, the number is more than five million.”
These IDPs, said Trabelsi, face real suffering in areas of conflict, live in fragile conditions and are unable to access the most basic services such as adequate housing, health services and clean water. “The ICRC is not present on the Turkish border on the Syrian side, where there are Syrian refugees, because Turkey is not a conflict zone, and the Turkish Red Crescent is carrying out its duty with the refugees there.”