UN High Commissioner for Refugees welcomes Albanian offer of humanitarian admission for 210 residents of Camp Hurriya, Iraq
Press Releases, 18 March 2013
The UN High Commissioner for Refugees, António Guterres, today welcomed a generous offer by the Albanian Government of humanitarian admission for 210 residents from Camp Hurriya in Iraq to Albania.
"I am very grateful that the Albanian Government has offered solutions for 210 people from Camp Hurriya," said Mr Guterres. "The residents of Camp Hurriya urgently need solutions to relocate out of Iraq. We hope they welcome this offer and cooperate to ensure the departure of this important number of people."
The camp has seen a recent deterioration of the security situation of its residents, with a mortar attack on the camp on February 9th killing eight and wounding dozens with subsequent threats made against the residents.
"This generous offer is an demonstration of international solidarity and burden sharing for a vulnerable population", said Mr Guterres. "I strongly encourage other countries to follow Albania's lead and offer solutions for the camp residents that enable them to relocate outside of Iraq."
Camp Hurriya, also known as Camp Liberty, has over 3000 residents.
For further information, please contact Sybella Wilkes on +41 22 739 7968
Crisis in Iraq: Displacement
UNHCR and its partners estimate that out of a total population of 26 million, some 1.9 million Iraqis are currently displaced internally and more than 2 million others have fled to nearby countries. While many people were displaced before 2003, increasing numbers of Iraqis are now fleeing escalating sectarian, ethnic and general violence. Since January 2006, UNHCR estimates that more than 800,000 Iraqis have been uprooted and that 40,000 to 50,000 continue to flee their homes every month. UNHCR anticipates there will be approximately 2.3 million internally displaced people within Iraq by the end of 2007. The refugee agency and its partners have provided emergency assistance, shelter and legal aid to displaced Iraqis where security has allowed.
In January 2007, UNHCR launched an initial appeal for US$60 million to fund its Iraq programme. Despite security issues for humanitarian workers inside the country, UNHCR and partners hope to continue helping up to 250,000 of the most vulnerable internally displaced Iraqis and their host communities
Posted on 12 June 2007
Crisis in Iraq: Displacement
UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador Angelina Jolie meets Iraqi refugees in Syria
UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador Angelina Jolie returned to the Syrian capital Damascus on 2 October, 2009 to meet Iraqi refugees two years after her last visit. The award-winning American actress, accompanied by her partner Brad Pitt, took the opportunity to urge the international community not to forget the hundreds of thousands of Iraqi refugees who remain in exile despite a relative improvement in the security situation in their homeland. Jolie said most Iraqi refugees cannot return to Iraq in view of the severe trauma they experienced there, the uncertainty linked to the coming Iraqi elections, the security issues and the lack of basic services. They will need continued support from the international community, she said. The Goodwill Ambassador visited the homes of two vulnerable Iraqi families in the Jaramana district of southern Damascus. She was particularly moved during a meeting with a woman from a religious minority who told Jolie how she was physically abused and her son tortured after being abducted earlier this year in Iraq and held for days. They decided to flee to Syria, which has been a generous host to refugees.
UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador Angelina Jolie meets Iraqi refugees in Syria
Angelina Jolie returns to Iraq, urges support for the displaced
UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador Angelina Jolie returned to Iraq in July 2009 to offer support to the hundreds of thousands of Iraqis who remain displaced within their own country.
During her day-long visit to Baghdad, UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador Angelina Jolie visited a makeshift settlement for internally displaced people in north-west Baghdad where she met families displaced from the district of Abu Ghraib, located to the west of Baghdad, and from the western suburbs of the capital.
Despite the difficulties in Iraq, Jolie said this was a moment of opportunity for Iraqis to rebuild their lives. "This is a moment where things seem to be improving on the ground, but Iraqis need a lot of support and help to rebuild their lives."
UNHCR estimates that 1.6 million Iraqis were internally displaced by a wave of sectarian warfare that erupted in February 2006 after the bombing of a mosque in the ancient city of Samarra. Almost 300,000 people have returned to their homes amid a general improvement in the security situation since mid-2008.
Angelina Jolie returns to Iraq, urges support for the displaced
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Croatia: Sunday Train Arrivals
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Germany: Refugees Crossing
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Iraq: Heartbreak at the Border
As the Syria crisis enters a fifth year, Syrians continue to seek safety abroad. But desperation is driving some to return to their war-torn country.