Displaced persons in Iraq

Hilary Benn has been asked what estimate he has made of the number of internally displaced people in Iraq; and what assessment he has made of recent trends in the number.

He replied thus: The Government of Iraq, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and its partners estimate there are now more than 1.6 million internally displaced persons (IDPs) within Iraq. Up to 1.1 million of these people are believed to have left their homes under the previous regime. The UNHCR report that there are 424,000 newly displaced who have left their homes and communities since the bombing of the Samarra shrine in February 2006. Reasons for this recent displacement are mainly due to the rise in sectarian violence around Iraq.

The majority of internally displaced persons in Iraq are either living with relatives, friends or extended family, or renting accommodation in other neighbourhoods. However, thousands of displaced without family links or money, are living in public buildings and schools, improvised shelters and government camps run by the International Federation of the Red Crescent.
UN agencies are delivering food and emergency assistance in central and southern Iraq together with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the International Organisation of Migration (IOM). Since February, the ICRC has distributed food and emergency relief to 150,000 people. EC member states have recently agreed to give €10 million to the UN for the provision of additional shelter and other basic needs for IDPs.

The UNHCR also estimate that there are up to 1.6 million Iraqis living outside their country, most of them in Jordan (500,000) and Syria (450,000). Some have been outside for a decade or more, but many have moved since 2003. The UN Assistance Mission Iraq is currently conducting an assessment of these people’s needs.

Since 2003, DFID has contributed over £100 million to humanitarian agencies working in Iraq, including £85 million for the UN Humanitarian Appeal and £32 million to the ICRC for emergency humanitarian assistance. This includes £4 million for their 2006 Appeal. In 2004, DFID also provided £70 million to the International Reconstruction Fund Facility for Iraq (IRFFI). IRFFI has already spent over $18 million on supporting the return and reintegration of IDPs in Iraq. We are in close touch with UN humanitarian agencies so that we are able to respond quickly where unmet needs are identified.