Refugees of Iraq

Since March 2003

Refugees from Iraq are quickly building themselves into a large humanitarian crisis in the world. Since the US-led entry into Iraq in March 2003, an estimated 1.6-2.0 million people have fled the country. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees estimated in a report released last month that more than 1.6 million Iraqis have left since March 2003, nearly 7 percent of the population.

Most have gone to Jordan and Syria, creating demographic shifts that have worried both governments. There is a fear from both countries and others hosting sizable Iraqi refugee populations that sectarian tensions may spill over amongst the exiles.

Jordan

Jordan has taken in roughly 750,000 Iraqi refugees since the war began with more arriving daily. Jordan has been criticized by human rights organizations for not classifying the newcomers by the title "refugee" and instead calling them "visitors," disinclining the Jordanian government from extending to the Iraqis the same benefits enjoyed by 1.5 million Palestinian refugees residing in Jordan.

Jordanians have expressed resentment to the newcomers, built up since the influx of refugees during and following the Persian Gulf War in 1990-1991. Then, affluent Iraqis arrived and invested in the Jordanian economy, sending prices soaring too high for many working class or lower class Jordanians. Today, the arrival of mostly poor Iraqis has compounded problems, increasing demand and applying more pressure on the Jordanian economy.

The government has also been accused of cracking down on Shiite activities in the country while allowing Sunni Iraqis to carry on their lives without harassment from the government. The authorities deny any discrimination, claiming it treats any illicit activity by Sunnis or Shiites from Iraq equally.

Syria

Syria has taken in roughly a million refugees, with as many as half of them being Iraqi Christians. Most of them have settled in and around the city and suburbs of Damascus. The reason for its large refugee population can be attributed to more than just geography. Syria maintains an open-door policy to Iraqis looking for refugee status.

Syrian authorities worry that the new influx of refugees could limit the country's resources. Sources like oil, heat, water and electricity are said to be becoming more scarce as demand as gone up.

Minorities

Christians

Perhaps as many as half a million Iraqi Christians are thought to have fled the sectarian fighting in Iraq, with Christians bearing the brunt of animosity toward the perceived "crusade" by the United States in Iraq. Most are Assyrians or Chaldeans though many sects live in Iraq. Most have chosen to go to Syria due to the cultural similarities between the two countries, Syria's open-door policy to Iraqis, and the large population of Syrian Christians, perhaps as high as as 2 million. The large influx of Iraqis may tip the demographic scale in a country with a diverse population.

Sabeans

Sabeans, also known as Mandeans, are part of an ancient ethnoreligious group in southern Iraq. They are known to be the last practicing gnostic sect in the Middle East. There are thought to have been about 40,000 in the country prior to the US-led invasion. As a non-Muslim group, they have received much of the attention from sectarian militias in the country. Many are said to have fled to Iran and to various other destinations. Mandean diaspora organizations are reportedly focusing all their resources on evacuating all the remaining Mandeans in Iraq.

Palestinians

A small Palestinian population of about 38,000 has also faced pressure, with many living in the Baghdadi neighborhood of al-Baladiya. Many have been threatened and have since fled the country. Denied access by Syria, more than 350 Palestinians remain in "inhumane conditions" on the border. UNHCR has appealed to Israel to allow admission into the occupied territories of Gaza and the West Bank. The agency said that from resettlement countries, only Canada and Syria had taken Palestinians from Iraq in the past.

Sources

http://www.genocidewatch.org/IraqManyChristiansFlee5august2004.htm http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/08/world/middleeast/08refugees.html?pagewanted=1&ei=5070&en=cd4dcdb5e4609739&ex=1167195600 http://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/17/world/middleeast/17christians.html?ex=1318737600&en=b17170ae4207bca0&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/meast/11/22/iraq.report/index.html http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/12/29/AR2005122901360_2.html http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/CC6879B7-ACF3-4C9F-8C70-827F67373E53.htm?FRAMELESS=true&NRNODEGUID=%7bCC6879B7-ACF3-4C9F-8C70-827F67373E53%7d