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Iraq: Greater support needed for uprooted communities

At the end of a six-day visit to Iraq, the president of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) vowed to scale up assistance to displaced people and the communities hosting them. President Peter Maurer witnessed the difficult conditions endured by people as a result of ongoing fighting, long periods of displacement, loss of property, […]

The ICRC reports:

At the end of a six-day visit to Iraq, the president of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) vowed to scale up assistance to displaced people and the communities hosting them. President Peter Maurer witnessed the difficult conditions endured by people as a result of ongoing fighting, long periods of displacement, loss of property, and freezing temperatures. He joined ICRC teams distributing food and other relief and visited a facility that provides clean drinking water to displaced people.

"This week I have heard heartbreaking stories of families uprooted violently from their homes and separated from their loved ones," said Mr Maurer. "The people of Iraq have shown extraordinary solidarity with their fellow countrymen and women who have fled the violence in their thousands. When the ICRC comes to deliver aid to the displaced, it finds that local communities have already received these people in distress with open arms and great generosity. But in the face of the enormous suffering of the displaced and the additional pressure on host communities and services, we all have a duty to ensure that their basic needs in terms of food, water, health care and shelter are met."