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Children's safety is at risk without adequate accommodation, Save the Children warns; parents say they have come back to destruction and bomb remnants.

Thousands of children and their families are forced to live in badly damaged houses in abandoned areas with unexploded bombs, dead bodies and rubble, after the sudden closure of several camps for displaced people in Iraq, Save the Children has witnessed.

Save the Children teams spoke to parents who had been forced to leave the camps. They told harrowing accounts of finding unexploded bombs and corpses in buildings and under rubble in the areas they now reside in. Families are in urgent need of basic services such as electricity, clean and safe drinking water, food and transport.

Ali*, 47, a father of four who returned to Mosul from Yahyawa camp in Kirkuk,said: When we came back here, the area wasn't cleared; there were explosives. I brought down a non-exploded bomb from the rooftop of my house. Children were holding bullets but didn't know what they were. My son came to me with a non-exploded grenade in his hand. He said; 'Father, what is this?' People also found a corpse in one of the destroyed houses.

This area was the last shelter for ISIS in Ninewa, so most of our houses were destroyed during the conflict. Our children are not safe here. They need safety, they need awareness about landmines and unexploded bombs, mental health support, toys, winter clothes and food.

The camp closures are part of the return of around 250,000 people to their areas of origin, including 48,000 people who will be affected by camp closures before the end of November.[1]

Some of the 303 families who have been moved out of the Yahyawa camp have arrived in Mosul, Eiyadiah and Tal Afar in Ninewa governorate, only to discover there was no safe shelter, Save the Children said. Yahyawa camp used to shelter nearly 2,000 people, including around 1,000 children. According to Save the Children's volunteers who were forced from the camps as well, families are particularly worried about girls getting kidnapped.

With winter approaching, families face spending the harshest season without adequate shelter or heating, Save the Children fears.

Shahad*, who volunteered with Save the Children in Yahyawa camp before it was closed, said: "I wish we didn't come back here, because our houses were destroyed. It's too cold and there are no adequate services like drinking water, electricity or cleaning. Most of the people refurbish a room for the whole family to live in. Children and their families are in desperate need of fuel and heating to keep them warm during the cold winter. They also need beds and blankets.

There are many risks to children's lives here, such as explosives, rubble, COVID-19, scarcity of food, dead bodies and skulls among the rubble, and the cold winter.

Save the Children's Country Director in Iraq Ishtiaq Mannan said: "Whats happening now is deeply concerning. Up to 49 percent of the affected people are children who have lived in difficult camp conditions for over three years, and are now forced to live in places no child should live in: in the midst of debris and among dead bodies. This is a desperate situation for thousands of children in the middle of a pandemic, made worse by the looming start of winter. This is why we are calling on the government to provide alternative shelter for families who do not wish to return to their areas of origin.

Teams from Save the Children are conducting an assessment in several areas of return, to understand the immediate needs of families and children. The organisation is calling on the international community to work with the Iraqi government to come to a long-term plan for the closures of the camps in line with international standards to ensure the protection of vulnerable families and children.

*Name changed to protect identity

[1] https://www.unhcr.org/news/briefing/2020/11/5fae43084/unhcr-ramps-suppor...

Notes to editors:

We have photo content available here.

For more information or interview requests, kindly reach out to:

Ahmed Bayram, Ahmed.Bayram@savethechildren.org / +961 71 562 855

Faiz Jamil (London), faiz.jamil@savethechildren.org / +44 7542 596542

Out-of-hours (GMT) and weekend: Media@savethechildren.org.uk / +44 7831 650 409

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Iraq: Children forced to live among corpses, unexploded bombs and rubble after camp closures strand thousands - Iraq - ReliefWeb

Missing in any debate about whether it is wise for the United States to reduce our troop numbers in both Afghanistan and Iraq, as the Trump administration has ordered, down to 2,500 Americans in each country (a number, let it be noted, that is too few to fight and too many to die), is the question members of Congress and policymakers invariably choose to duck: How did we get into the longest war in U.S. history in Afghanistan and the second-longest in Iraq?

Of course, we know, it was in response to Sept. 11, 2001, when al-Qaida operatives hijacked four commercial U.S. airliners and crashed them into the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon in Washington, resulting in the deaths of nearly 3,000. None of the 19 hijackers was an Afghani their leader was Egyptian and 15 were from Saudi Arabia but Afghanistan had been the attackers base. Congress overwhelmingly voted to give President George W. Bush, through the authorization of the use of military force, the green light to use force against those responsible for the attacks of 9/11.

By August of 2002, at a national convention of the Veterans of Foreign War, Bushs vice president, Dick Cheney, after stating his conviction that Saddam Hussein will acquire nuclear weapons fairly soon, made the case for war: Simply stated, there is no doubt that Saddam Hussein now has weapons of mass destruction. There is no doubt he is amassing them to use against our friends, against our allies, and against us. Hussein did not have then, and never would have, any weapons of mass destruction, nor was he ever anywhere remotely close to obtaining nuclear weapons. But the U.S., just seven months later, under false pretenses and disinformation, would send 130,000 Americans into harms way to invade Iraq.

Ignored was the doctrine stating that the U.S. should commit men and women to combat only as a last resort and only after all policy options have been exhausted and then only 1) when a vital security interest of the nation is at stake; 2) when the U.S. force employed is overwhelming and disproportionate to the force of the enemy; 3) when the mission and the military action are both understood and supported by the American people, and the mission has international support; and 4) when there is a clear and plausible exit strategy for the U.S. troops sent risking their lives.

War, as the conservative historian Michael Barone has written, demands equality of sacrifice. The Iraq and Afghanistan wars were the only wars longer than three months since the Mexican-American War in 1846 that the U.S. has fought without a military draft and without a tax increase. There would be no homefront shortages nor civilian sacrifice requested, only Republican administrations enacting massive tax cuts, tilted to the most advantaged, while the costs of the two wars reached an estimated $5 trillion.

In his landmark book on the American infantryman, George Wilson quoted Col. Steve Siegfried, a combat veteran: Armies dont fight wars. Countries fight wars. I hope to hell we learned that in Vietnam a country fights a war. If it doesnt, then we shouldnt send an army.

But lets be brutally frank: We at home who did not have a loved one in uniform have borne no burden. We have paid no price. These are wars when all the sacrifice and all the suffering which have been considerable have been borne by our fellow Americans who volunteered and the people of Afghanistan and Iraq. And 20 years later, there still is no clear and plausible exit strategy for the U.S. troops sent to risk their lives. Shame on us.

Mark Shields is a nationally syndicated columnist.

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Afghanistan and Iraq: When will we ever learn? - Marshalltown Times Republican

FILE: President Abdelfattah Al-Sisi

CAIRO - 26 November 2020: President Abdel Fattah El Sisi asserted Egypt's keenness on cooperating with Iraq in the various spheres, especially the military field as part of Egypt's unwavering policy in support of Iraqi security and stability to help it achieve cherished progress and prosperity.

Presidential Spokesman Bassam Radi said, President Sisi discussed, during a meeting Thursday with Iraqi Defense Minister Juma Anad Saadoun, bilateral military cooperation including joint drills and programs to enhance capabilities, exchanging expertise, as well as an array of Arab and regional issues of mutual concern.

Defense Minister Mohamed Zaki took part in the meeting.

President Sisi sent his greetings to Iraqi President Barham Salih and Prime Minister Mustafa al Kadhimi.

On his part, Saadoun said Iraq is looking forward to boosting cooperation with Egypt, especially under President Sisi's leadership.

The Iraqi minister extended to President Sisi's the Iraqi president's and the Iraqi prime minister's greetings, asserting the Iraqi people's appreciation of Egypt's continued support to Iraq on the various levels.

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Sisi asserts Egypt's keenness on cooperation with Iraq in various domains - Egypttoday

Baghdad, Iraq, 24 November 2020: The World Health Organization (WHO) and the Ministry of Health in Iraq has launched a new phase of the COVID-19 awareness-raising campaign in heavily populated and high-risk areas of Mosul, Ninewa governorate. The campaign aims at reminding the public of the importance of wearing face masks, physical distancing and maintaining good hand hygiene.

The campaign like the previous ones, is themed "Your Health is Important". More than one million people are being targeted in this round of the campaign, including refugees and internally displaced people (IDPs) in 10 locations of the governorate. The campaign will use one hundred fifty local volunteers who will move door to door sensitizing communities on ways to stay safe from COVID-19 as well as disseminating community awareness materials. Through its implementing partner; namely, United Iraq Medical Society (UIMS), videos and audio messages will be broadcasted on booths, mobile screens and mobile clinics. The volunteers will also distribute face masks and hand sanitizers

According to Dr Adham Ismail, the WHO Representative in Iraq, the number of COVID-19 cases are likely to increase during the winter season, especially in the areas experiencing extreme cold temperatures such as Mosul and the neighboring governorates. Stressing the importance of the community responsibility and capability in containing the spread of the virus, Dr Adham said, Controlling the level of infection in towns and cities to protect families and friends is essential. Citizens' awareness will ease the burden on health of high number of COVID-19 cases among health practitioners and authorities working day and night to confront the pandemic. Dr Adham added We witnessed an increase of 36% in COVID_19 cases in the governorate in the past week alone. Thus we call to expand the surveillances conducted by the Iraqi health departments.

Like many parts of Iraq, Mosul has recorded high COVID-19 infection rates which is a burden to the already fragile health system that was heavily damaged during the internal conflict which ended more than 3 years ago. The outbreak is an additional burden on available resources and has greatly affected the national capacities needed to accommodate the high numbers of COVID-19 cases in the province. Added Dr Adham.

Since July 2020, WHO is collaborating with the Federal Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Health in Kurdistan region, the Ministry of Youth and Sports, and the Ministry of Interior (represented by the Community Police) to conduct COVID-19 community awareness-raising campaigns in heavily populated areas and affected districts of several governorates in Iraq; namely, Baghdad, Sulymania, Basra, Wasit, Thi Qar, Misan, Hilla, Karbala, Erbil and Dohuk. So far, the campaign has reached millions of Iraqis with awareness and preventive materials. WHO will continue reaching out to communities thanks to our valuable donors (The European Union, as well as Governments of Germany, Kuwait, United Kingdom and France) who have helped the organization to reach out to the vulnerable and underserved communities in Iraq.

For more information, please contact:

Ms Baraa ShabaWHO Communications Officer+96478000100244shabab@who.int

Ms Pauline AjelloWHO Communications Officer+964 7729 877 288ajellopa@who.int

Ms Ajyal SultanyWHO Communications Officer+964 7740 892 878sultanya@who.int

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WHO Iraq conducts its community awareness-raising campaign to halt the recent surge in COVID-19 cases in Mosul [EN/AR] - Iraq - ReliefWeb

BAGHDAD -Iraqs elite Counter-Terrorism Service said on Monday it had arrested ISISs administrative chief after he arrived at Baghdad airport.

The man, known as Abu Naba, was detained in October as he was getting into a taxi, just after landing in Baghdad, CTS spokesman Sabah al-Noaman said.

Describing him as a major target, Noaman said Abu Naba had been steering financial support to ISIS, organising meetings and relaying messages between jihadist members.

He began his jihadist path in 2003 with Al-Qaeda, before joining various groups that eventually led to ISIS, he said.

But Noaman declined to reveal Abu Nabas real name, where he had been flying in from and how he managed to cross through airport security before he was apprehended.

In 2014, the terrorist group seized a third of Iraqi territory, which local troops backed by the US-led coalition only recaptured in late 2017.

More than a year later, in 2019, ISIS lost its last foothold in neighbouring Syria.

Jihadist sleeper cells have continued to wage hit-and-run attacks, including one north of Baghdad late Saturday that killed six security forces and four civilians.

They have also continued to transfer funds and personnel across Iraqi territory, Iraqi and Western officials say.

Abu Naba had been in contact with remaining members of ISIS in Iraq, and we were monitoring their conversations for a long time, said Noaman.

Since his arrest, Abu Naba has remained in Iraqi custody and is being interrogated.

Noaman said he would be tried under Iraqs counter-terror law, which carries the death penalty for membership in a terrorist organisation.

Iraq ranks fifth among countries that carry out death sentences, according to Amnesty International, which documented 100 executions in the country in 2019.

Since declaring ISIS defeated in 2017, Iraq has sentenced to death hundreds of Iraqi defendants for membership in the jihadist faction but only a small proportion have been carried out.

On November 16, 21 men convicted of terrorism charges were hanged at the notorious Nasiriyah prison in southern Iraq, which the United Nations warned was deeply troubling.

Resurgence

Saturdays lethal attack by ISIS has sparked acute criticism of the authorities.

Late Saturday, a roadside bomb hit a civilian car on an open road near Mt. Makhoul, about 200 kilometres north of Baghdad, police and a local official said.

When security forces arrived at the scene, jihadists opened fire on them, police said.

The attack killed at least six Iraqi security personnel and four civilians.

There was no claim by ISIS, but both the local mayor and police blamed the group, which Iraqs government said in late 2017 it had defeated.

That victory came after three years of brutal fighting to wrench back the one-third of Iraqi territory that had been captured by ISIS.

Although the jihadists no longer hold territory, sleeper cells wage hit-and-run attacks on state infrastructure, particularly in desert areas north of the capital.

Two weeks ago, 11 people were killed in an ISIS attack on a lookout post at Al-Radwaniyah on Baghdads outskirts, areas which are predominantly Sunni Muslim.

According to a study published this month by the International Centre for Counter-Terrorism in the Hague, the jihadist group has claimed more attacks in Iraq than in any other country where it is active over the period December 2018 to May this year.

The study said that ISIS activity in Iraq accelerated precipitously from February 2020 onwards, reaching levels that are worryingly close to those preceding its sweep across a third of Iraq in 2014.

ISIS in Iraq generally appears to be moving from a (re) building phase into one that is characterised by brazen guerrilla-style attacks, the study noted.

Losing credibility

The attacks have coincided with a new campaign by Iraqs security forces to arrest jihadists hiding out in rugged terrain in the countrys north and west.

In fact, just a day before the attack, the head of Iraqs federal police Jaafar al-Batat told state media that the area around Mt. Makhoul had been cleared.

The incidents carried out by ISIS in some remote areas are isolated cases and now under control, he said.

As ISIS struck, the contradiction between official assurances and reality on the ground outraged many Iraqis, especially in the province of Salahuddin.

Iraqi security forces just assured us this area had been cleaned, wrote Mashaan al-Jaboury, a Sunni lawmaker representing Salahaddin, on Twitter after the violence late Saturday.

For Jamal al-Dhari, another Sunni figure writing on Twitter, the latest ambush sheds light on the repeated failures in the fight against terrorism.

The government of (Prime Minister) Mustafa al-Kadhimi must seriously put in place a national strategy and stop being satisfied with investigative committees,' said Dhari.

Iraqis regularly mock their government for establishing investigative bodies that do not produce results.

The tensions come as the US-led coalition, which helped Iraq fight ISIS starting in 2014, is drawing down its troops.

This year, the US has already shrunk its contribution to the coalition from 5,200 to some 3,000 troops, as other countries have reduced their numbers as well.

The US announced last week it would withdraw another 500 troops by mid-January, which Iraqi officials say is the fourth and final phase of the coalitions draw-down.

Violent pressure

The top US commander for the Middle East, General Kenneth McKenzie, said the progress made by Iraqi security forces in recent years had allowed the US to draw down.

Troops remaining in Iraq would focus on training local forces, carrying out air strikes in support of their operations and running drone surveillance over the country.

The US military presence remains a source of controversy.

Iraqs parliament voted in January to seek the departure of all foreign troops, following a US drone strike on Baghdad that killed top Iranian general Qassem Soleimani and a leading Iraqi paramilitary commander.

Kadhimi, whose government is seen as US-leaning, has slow-walked the implementation.

Pro-Iran factions have organised a series of rallies in recent months and are thought to have launched several missile strikes on Baghdads Green Zone to pressure Kadhimi to implement the decision.

If you dont leave on your own, our rockets will force you out! one sign at a recent protest read.

It was in reference to dozens of rocket attacks on Western diplomatic and military installations since October 2019.

The US has threatened to close its embassy in Baghdad unless rocket attacks stop.

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Iraq arrests ISIS figure but its credibility is sorely tested | | AW - The Arab Weekly