Iraq's Forgotten Refugee Children

The war in Iraq has taken its toll on all sides, but those left to suffer disparagingly are the children who are quite literally caught in the cross fire. Children are left wounded, disabled, or even worse dead. Those who escape harm from the violence of the conflict are often left nothing short of hanging in the balance, many are left without parents, and as the number of orphaned children grow, so do issues for which to care for the children. Even those who have experienced little in the ways of such apparent losses, are often forced into refugee camps, face food and medical shortages, have little to no access to an education. One thing is clear all are left daunted by the disruption of war, and will undoubtedly battle with the scars of war for the rest of their lives.

Sahira Jasmim, 38, lives in squalor in a tent with her five children. She fled Baghdad after her husband, a taxi driver, died in the wave of killings that engulfed her neighborhood, Dora, in the south of the capital. “I’m forced to live like this,” she said. “I feel exhausted inside. When I was living in Baghdad I had electricity, water and a home. Now I have nothing. It’s very cold in here in the winter and I have one gas heater to keep the children warm. It’s on the entire time and kerosene is very expensive. I don’t think about the future — what future?” (The Sunday Times)

The situation with Iraqi refugees both within the country and across the region continues to remain despairing, even in spite of the decline in violence. The mass majority of those Iraqi’s who have been displaced by the conflict have been able to return to their homes, due to a lack of financial resources or an inability to reclaim their property. Many refugees desperately seek freedom outside the country, and are willing to do so at any cost, a desperation that has sent many to risk the dangers of escape for new life far from the battles of Iraq. Often the journeys end tragically, as was it almost the case for two families last month, who barely escaped death in a minefield in the no-man’s land dividing the Mediterranean island of Cyprus (UNHRC). The United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHCR) estimates that over 4.7 million Iraqis have been displaced, of these; more than 2.7 million internally displaced and over 2 million remain in neighboring countries, the vast majority in Syria and Jordan.

The refugee situation has left the majority in dire need of humanitarian aid, leaving many families find themselves in desperate search of escape to see that their children receive life saving medical treatments. Iraqi’s now compose the largest population seeking asylum in Europe, causing the European Union to seek to resettle accept 10,000 of the most vulnerable refugees. Germany alone plans to resettle 2,500 Iraqi refugees, taking their first resettlement case last month of a family with a son needing urgent medical treatment for a heart defect (UN News Service).

While the need for improved services for refugees remains apparent, there are a number of successes and programs being put into place that are looking to meet the must vulnerable refugee needs head on. One such program is aimed at refugee families, which are headed by females. “Such camps will ensure respect and protection for families in dire need of government care.”(IRIN)  Though some efforts are being made to look at the most vulnerable and marginalized, extensive measures are urgently needed to ensure that the livelihoods of refugees are not only met, but to see that they are both prepared and able to return home.