In the News
UN to send Iraqi refugees food aid by text message
Reuters - 10/27/2009
Web forums help Iraqi refugees adapt to America
Kansas City Star - 9/27/2009
UN agency hails Belgium’s decision to accept Iraqi refugees
UN News Centre - 9/4/2009
Iraqi Refugee Stories
"My life is being wasted here."
From
the small city of Kut in the south of Iraq, "Mirah," now 27, was
working on a degree in English at her local university when the U.S.entered Iraq
in 2003. Read
Mirah's story.
Take Action
Up to 2 million Iraqis have fled their country, and 2.8 million more are internally displaced inside Iraq. Their fight to live in dignity only grows worse as food prices increase, savings are depleted, families struggle to access education and health care, child labor and prostitution become common survival strategies. The U.S has a moral obligation – as well as a strategic interest – to lead the international community with a comprehensive response to this destabilizing humanitarian crisis.
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Are We Doing Enough?
U.S. Meets Iraqi Resettlement Goal for FY 09 - But Additional Measures Needed
Human Rights First welcomes the U.S. announcement that it has met its goal of resettling 17,000 vulnerable Iraqi refugees by September 30 - in total, 18,833 Iraqi refugees found safety in the United States in FY 09. But we call on the U.S. government to devote additional attention and resources to resolving a number of remaining impediments that delay timely resettlement of the most vulnerable Iraqis.
Read HRF report "Promises to the Persecuted: The Refugee Crisis in Iraq Act of 2008"
Click here to view complete data from FY 05 to FY 09
Source: U.S. Dept. of State - Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration - Office of Admissions - Refugee Processing Center
The Iraqi Refugee Crisis
Human Rights First is working to secure a comprehensive response to the Iraqi refugee crisis. We have pressed the United States to bring some of the most vulnerable refugees to safety through a major resettlement initiative and to lead the international community in providing aid for refugees and those displaced within Iraq. We now call on the Obama administration and other international actors to ensure that Iraq's displaced are not forced to return to their homes except under safe, voluntary, and dignified conditions. As the UN refugee agency said in May 2009, "The improvement of the situation in Iraq does not yet constitute fundamental changes sufficient to promote or encourage massive returns to Iraq."
Iraqi Refugees in the United States
The Associated Press highlights the challenges facing newly arrived Iraqi refugees in this article and cites to Human Rights First's recent report "Promises to the Persecuted: The Refugee Act of 2008" – which revealed that just 20 percent of at least 20,000 Iraqis with American ties who've applied have arrived in the United States since 2003. HRF's report also urges the Obama administration to review and improve security clearance procedures so that eligible refugees do not wait for a year or more – in an almost cruel limbo - while their applications are processed.
Read more on HRF's advocacy on the Iraqi refugee crisis
HRF Releases Report on Refugee Crisis in Iraq Act
Human Rights First urges the Obama administration to clear remaining bureaucratic obstacles to fulfilling America's promise to persecuted Iraqis who worked with the United States in Iraq, as well as to their families. A new report (April 2009) - Promises to the Persecuted: The Refugee Crisis in Iraq Act of 2008 - examines implementation of the this critical legislation. It finds that, despite a Congressional mandate intended to expedite Iraqi refugee processing times, only a small portion of eligible Iraqis have been granted a safe haven in the United States.
The U.S. government has not made a public estimate of the number of U.S. affiliated Iraqis who may face danger as a result of their work with the United States. In the absence of government data, we provide the first-ever public estimates of Iraqis with U.S. ties: Approximately 146,000 Iraqis have worked with the U.S. government, contractors, NGOs, or media - not including family members. Approximately 4,200 have actually made it to the United States, including some family members, out of at least 20,000 applications. The detailed breakdown of our new estimates appears in our new report.
HRF Releases Comprehensive Strategy on Iraqi Refugee Crisis
Human Rights First calls on President Obama to fulfill his campaign's commitment to confront the Iraqi refugee crisis. In a new blueprint (December 2008) - How to Confront the Iraqi Refugee Crisis - Human Rights First provides a detailed and comprehensive strategy for the incoming administration. Addressing the crisis is not only a moral imperative for the United States; it is also in the country's strategic interest, and will help rehabilitate the U.S. reputation in the region.