Iraqi refugees flee the burning city of Basra.
Photo: Scotsman.com
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The Growing Iraqi Refugee Crisis
July 25, 2007
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Since 9/11, the U.S. Congress has appropriated $610 billion dollars in war-related money. With inflation figured in, that's roughly the same amount spent over the full 16 years of the Vietnam War. The Iraq War alone has cost the U.S. $450 billion dollars.
And what about the cost to the Iraqi people? In addition to civilian casualties, since 2003 hundreds of thousands of Iraqis have been forced to flee their war-torn country to nearby neighboring countries--countries that either don't want them or can't take care of them.
On this edition, correspondent Dahr Jamail takes us to the streets of Damascus, Syria where we hear from the Iraqi refugees themselves and the organizations trying to assist them.
Featuring:
Eman Abdul Rahid, Iraqi woman whose arm was broken in a car bomb;
Adhem Mardini, UNHCR public information officer, Damascus office;
Abu Noor, teacher; Omar Jassim, laborer;
Rathman Shakr, former detainee and torture survivor;
Adnan, ex-Army officer; Dr. Omar Al-Khattab, young Iraqi doctor;
Sarrah, student of dentistry; Hummam al-Mukhtar, 17 year old Iraqi student;
Hussam, 22 year old Iraqi student; Adel Al-Jabbah, Amir Alaby and Abdel Aziz,
Syrian shop owners.
Senior Producer/Host: Tena Rubio
Contributing Freelance Producer: Dahr Jamail
Mixing Engineer: Phillip Babich
Interns: Samson Reiny and Puck Lo
For more information:
Refugee International
1705 N Street, NW
Washington, DC 20036
202-828-0110;
ri@refintl.org
www.refintl.org
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
(UNHCR)
Case Postale 2500
CH-1211 Genève 2 Dépôt
Suisse
+41 22 739 8111 (automatic switchboard)
www.unhcr.org/cgi-bin/texis/vtx/home
International Federation of Red Cross
and Red Crescent Societies
PO Box 372
CH-1211 Geneva 19
Switzerland
+41 22 730 42 22
www.ifrc.org
New York Delegation to the U.N.
International Federation
800 Second Avenue
Suite 355, 3rd floor
New York, NY 10017
212-338-0161
www.ifrc.org/contact/index.asp?navid=14
IRIN
(U.N. based humanitarian news agency for excellent reports and
updates on the refugee crisis)
www.irinnews.org
Dahr Jamail's MidEast Dispatches:
mail@dahrjamailiraq.com
www.dahrjamailiraq.com