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Only a fraction of the most vulnerable of the 2.2 million
internally displaced people (IDPs) in Iraq are getting the basic
humanitarian assistance they need partly because of insufficient
resources, says IOM upon releasing a mid-year review on
displacement in the middle eastern country.

"It is difficult to understand or to explain why, when there is
a clear awareness across the globe of a major crisis in Iraq, that
there is so little response to requests for funds to help people in
need of the most basic humanitarian assistance. Yes, insecurity is
hampering access to people, but there are, nevertheless,
organizations and their staff working on the ground despite
enormous risks, to assist vulnerable people. They could reach so
many more people with more resources," says Rafiq Tschannen,
IOM’s Chief of Mission for Iraq.

Iraq now has about 2.2 million internally displaced people
(IDPs) with another 2 million having fled to neighbouring countries
to seek refuge. Since IOM began monitoring displaced people in
Iraq’s 15 central and southern governorates at the end of
February 2006 when the bombing of the Al-Askari mosque in Samarra
sparked a new displacement crisis, the numbers of people forced to
flee their homes in fear of their lives have grown relentlessly.
Across Iraq, an average of 60,000 people are being displaced each
month in 2007.

Although Baghdad continues to be the origin of most of the
displacement since February 2006, this year has also seen a
significant increase in the number of displaced people arriving in
Iraq’s three northern governorates.

IOM’s Iraq Displacement 2007 Mid-Year Review confirms that
the trends observed at the end of 2006 – increased strains on
host communities and heightened competition for limited resources
such as food, water, accommodation and jobs; deterioration in the
sectors of health, education, water and sanitation; increased
vulnerabilities; and augmented needs of basic items essential to
human survival – are not only evident but rising on a daily
basis.

However, the increase in numbers of people without adequate
shelter, food, water or health care has not been met with
sufficiently increased funds for emergency humanitarian operations.
Although IOM has received more funds this year to help IDPs in
Iraq, they fall way short of what is needed.

An appeal launched last month for USD 85 million for operations
in 2007-2008, is only 18 per cent covered.

"Iraq is experiencing the worst human displacement of its
history and the impact of that displacement is not only being felt
at regional level, but also at international level. We have the
opportunity to do something about it and the time for action is
now," says Tschannen. "Failure to do so will exacerbate the
humanitarian dimension of a displacement crisis which may well be
entrenching communal divisions and which is already guaranteed to
have socio-economic reverberations in the country and the region
for many years to come."

IOM, which has been leading emergency distributions among
displaced and vulnerable populations inside Iraq, has assisted more
than 320,000 people since late February 2006. Since 2003, the
Organization has helped 5 million IDPs and vulnerable people by
providing emergency food and water supplies and implementing
community assistance projects in health, education, sanitation and
income generation.

The report is also available at "paragraph-link-no-underline" href=
"http://www.iom-iraq.net/idp.html">www.iom-iraq.net/idp.html

For further information, please contact:

Dana Graber

Tel: + 962 79 611 1759

E-mail: "mailto:dgrabertdy@iom.int">dgrabertdy@iom.int