Aid shrinks as Iraq's internal refugee tally grows

[ProSense]

Aid shrinks as Iraq's internal refugee tally grows

Some 280 NGOs are caring for Iraq's 2.3 million displaced by fighting. But the international support is drying up.
By Sam Dagher | Correspondent of The Christian Science Monitor
from the November 30, 2007 edition

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While the return of some of the estimated 2.2 million refugees in Syria and neighboring countries is being heralded by Iraqi officials as a sign of progress in Baghdad, many of the Shiites in this refugee camp, who have come here because it's close to their holy city of Najaf, will stay until they are convinced the sectarian warfare in Baghdad has truly ended.

Mr. Hussein and his family – he is a father of eight who is also caring for the 10-member family of his brother, killed in Ghazaliya at the height of sectarian bloodshed last year – are among the 2.3 million Iraqis considered internally displaced as of the end of September. That number is 16 percent higher than August, according the Iraqi Red Crescent Organization (IRCO).

And as the number of the internally displaced is growing, aid workers say the conditions they are living in is growing worse. They say it is becoming especially tough for children 12 and under, who make up 65 percent of the total number of internally displaced Iraqis.

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"Up to this point, the central government has done nothing for these people, only help them sometimes, and all that has been spent on the camp is from our budget," says Ahmed Duaibel, spokesman for the Najaf government. "Our pleas to Baghdad have fallen on deaf ears."

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Hey, but the "surge" is working and contractors' profits are up!

[Lasher]

1. Last time I counted it was a total of 4 million displaced Iraqis.

Half of those were somewhere in-country. Now it's a total of 4.5 million with 2.3 million of those considered internally displaced. I thought they had been going home in droves due to the success of the surge. Is this like we've turned another corner or something?

[KharmaTrain]

2. Just Because They're Going Back, Doesn't Mean Going Home

The majority who are leaving Syria and Jordan do so out of near desparation. These countries were already known for poor treatment of other refugees...if you have money you're safe, if not, you're on your own. For many the economic situation in Damascus or Amman is no better than the prospects in Baghdad...but then where are they returning to? Baghdad has turned into the new Beirut with ethnic cleansing dislocated a large number of that population and returning doesn't mean going back to the way things were...its entering a dangerous future.

The booosh regime's dealing with tribes is giving a false sense of security as we're buying off "cooperation", but its coming at a price that will get steeper as our military continues to play both ends against the middle in this losing game.