WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Congressman Bill Delahunt, Chairman of a House Foreign Affairs Oversight Subcommittee held a joint briefing which concluded that the Iraqi refugee crisis is growing and requires immediate attention from the United States. 

“The U.S. military intervention in Iraq has not only fostered widespread sectarian violence, but it has created a refugee crisis that the Bush Administration has failed to address,” Delahunt said. “The lack of planning and adequate funding for the millions of refugees has left neighboring countries with a situation that is beyond their control.”

The joint panel, comprised of the Subcommittee on International Organizations, Human Rights, and Oversight and the Subcommittee on the Middle East and South Asia, heard testimony from The United Nations Deputy High Commissioner of Refugees, Craig Johnstone, and Rafik Tchannen, Chief of Mission for Iraq from the International Organization of Migration.

The witnesses outlined the desperate conditions facing the millions of refugees and Iraqis who have been displaced by the war and resulting violence.  Refugees are seeking safety in neighboring countries, particularly Syria and Jordan, where government officials have been struggling to keep up with the demands of millions of new immigrants.  Host governments have become overwhelmed with the magnitude of providing millions of refugees access to essential services such as education and medical care, as well as employment.  

Johnstone and Tchannen agreed that both organizations are facing serious financial constraints in implementing programs to address the crisis.  In addition, Johnstone admitted that the office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) $261 million request for this year, even if fully funded, would not cover half the costs of helping the most desperate refugees.  “Frankly we need $498.5m just to address immediate needs this calendar year,” Johnstone said.  

While the US has pledged about $106.2 million for FY08 refugee-related appeals, the UNHCR will need contributions totaling another $392.3 million.   Johnstone testified that no other nations have made significant contributions to refugee appeals as the United States is widely perceived as bearing primary responsibility for these refugees.

“This is an American-made problem” agreed Delahunt “Unless we step in and take responsibility; the situation will worsen; further jeopardize our diminished standing in the region and create additional breeding grounds for terrorism.” At the hearing, Delahunt expressed concerns that recent polls conducted in the Middle East already show a very high level of mistrust and hostility towards the United States.

Johnstone has acknowledged the contributions the US has made to UNHCR’s Iraq related programs. “ However, if the question for today’s discussion is ‘Can the world, UNHCR and the US do more to help, then the answer is an unequivocal ‘yes’.”

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