| Abdul Sattar, Dunia,
Nawal and Abdul Karim have two things in common: death threats
forced all four of them to flee their native Iraq; and they
rely on Red Crescent Societies in neighbouring countries.
The two men and two women come from different ethnic and social
backgrounds. Each has his or her story and reason for escaping
from Iraq. Although they come from different sources, the
threats are the same: leave or die a violent death.
Security in Iraq has deteriorated to such an unprecedented
level, due to the international armed conflict that began
in 2003 and internal fighting, that many Iraqis find it nearly
impossible to live in their own country. The result is that
an estimated 4.2 million Iraqis have left their homes, the
largest population movement in the Middle East since more
than 800,000 Palestinians fled to neighbouring countries in
1948, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for
Refugees (UNHCR).
Fearing for his life, Abdul Sattar, 30, left Baghdad a year
ago and settled in Damascus. When he ran out of funds in June
2007, he decided to go back to Baghdad to sell his car, his
only remaining possession of value.
“This was my only alternative,” he explains,
speaking with difficulty.
His troubles began almost as soon as he arrived home. He was
stopped at a checkpoint on his way to sell his car. The car
was taken. He and nine other people were stuffed into a minivan
and taken to a house.
“I saw instruments of torture hanging from the ceiling,”
recalls Abdul Sattar. The people were beaten and tortured.
Two men were shot on the spot. The rest were taken to a place
called Al-Sadiyyah, a location known to have become a killing
field at the edge of Sadr City, in Baghdad.
Their heads covered with their shirts, the hostages were
ordered to kneel. It was dawn when they were shot at close
range. Abdul Sattar was shot three times. One of the bullets
lodged in his jaw. He can barely open his mouth now. “I
still cannot believe I was so lucky. The pain was unbearable
but I was able to sneak back home.” All the others died
instantly.
His family took him to a nearby hospital where he had several
operations. Afraid of being kidnapped again and killed, he
left for Damascus the day he was released from hospital.
Dunia, who is also a Shiite, escaped from Baghdad because
her husband, a blacksmith who had been assisting Iraqi forces
to armour their vehicles, was first warned then kidnapped
by the resistance.
Abdul Karim and Nawal are former Ba’ath party members;
both are Shia. They would have been killed if they had stayed
in their neighbourhoods. Nawal lost both her legs during US
bombing in 1991.
Swelling population
According to several international reports, an estimated
50,000 Iraqis leave their country each month. Most of them
go to Syria or Jordan before attempting to travel to third
countries.
“Somewhere between 25,000 and 30,000 new Iraqis enter
Syria every month,” says Abdul Rahman Al-Attar, president
of the Syrian Arab Red Crescent. “Many do not have the
means to support themselves.”
More than 2 million “externally displaced” Iraqis
have crossed the borders into neighbouring Syria and Jordan
since conflict began in Iraq in 2003. The large increase in
the populations of the two countries (over 8 per cent for
Syria and15 per cent for Jordan) has strained the health,
education, water and other systems. Prices of consumer items,
real estate and rents have seen sharp increases. More than
750,000 Iraqis have taken refuge in Jordan and nearly 1.5
million in Syria.
Danger at home
To help displaced Iraqis, the Red Cross Red Crescent Movement
and international humanitarian agencies are providing health
care, psychosocial support and educational assistance. Jordan
and Syria do not consider Iraqis to be refugees but guests
or expatriates.
In August, the Jordan National Red Crescent Society inaugurated
the first of five health clinics for Iraqis. In cooperation
with the International Federation, which launched an appeal
for US$15 million to assist Iraqis in Syria and Jordan, the
National Societies are to provide health care to 40,000 families
in Jordan and 30,000 families in Syria. The Syrian Arab Red
Crescent has established 12 health clinics around Syria in
cooperation with UNHCR and other organizations. The clinics
offer specialized medical services such as gynaecology, dental,
internal medicine, neurology, paediatrics and immunization.
Recent visits to three Damascus clinics showed large crowds
of patients. Each clinic receives 150 to 200 patients every
day. “I treat nearly 200 patients with bone problems
a week,” explains Akram Al-Hasani, a surgeon at Sayyida
Zainab clinic. “Many have gunshot wounds or old injuries.”
The clinics accept both Iraqis and Syrians for treatment.
“Nearly 70 per cent of the population of this neighbourhood
are Iraqis, the rest are Syrian,” explains Amer Al-Ali,
manager of Jaramana health clinic. “Both are welcome
to our clinic. We do not discriminate here.”
Two important meetings were held in July 2007 in Amman and
Damascus to study the best ways of helping host countries
deal with the crisis. The Amman meeting was co-chaired by
the Jordanian and Iraqi foreign ministries, and attended by
representatives of the International Federation, ICRC and
National Societies. It called upon the international community
to provide substantial assistance to the two governments to
enable them to meet the challenges of an increasingly volatile
situation.
In Damascus, government agencies, the Movement, United Nations
and humanitarian agencies discussed improving health care
for Iraqis in Egypt, Jordan and Syria.
Abdul Sattar, Nawal, Abdul Karim, Dunia and thousands more
Iraqis feel blessed that they are cared for in exile. Abdul
Sattar says he will not go back home any time soon.
“They called my cousin by phone from Iraq,” he
says. “I am frightened. They know that I live in Damascus.”
His three scars seem to have healed, but the psychological
scars of his ordeal, and that of thousands of others, will
take much longer to be cured. |
©DABBAKEH / INTERNATIONAL FERDERATION
©DABBAKEH / INTERNATIONAL FERDERATION
Mass movement
UNHCR estimates that more than 4.2 million Iraqis
have left their homes. Of these, some 2.2 million are
displaced internally, while more than 2 million have
fled to neighbouring states, particularly Syria and
Jordan. Many were displaced before 2003; numbers have
increased since. In 2006, Iraqis had become the leading
nationality seeking asylum in Europe. |
©DABBAKEH / INTERNATIONAL FERDERATION
©DABBAKEH / INTERNATIONAL FERDERATION
©DABBAKEH / INTERNATIONAL FERDERATION
|
