Fact Sheet #12, Fiscal Year (FY) 2003 April 15, 2003

• Humanitarian conditions have deteriorated in Iraq since the 1990 invasion of Kuwait and the subsequent Government of Iraq (GOI) manipulation of international sanctions. In 1996, the GOI accepted the U.N. Oil-for-Food Program (OFF), after which humanitarian conditions improved.
• Between 1991 and 1996, the U.S. Government provided nearly $794 million in humanitarian assistance to internally displaced persons (IDPs) in northern Iraq.
• Since 1996, revenues from OFF have provided food, medicine, and other civilian goods to assist vulnerable Iraqis. U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan noted in a letter to the U.N. Security Council (UNSC), that the GOI has ordered and paid for food, medicine, and other humanitarian supplies under OFF that have not yet been delivered.
• The World Food Program (WFP) estimates that 16 million Iraqis—approximately 60 percent of the total population—rely solely on food rations distributed through OFF in order to meet household needs.
• On March 20, 2003, Coalition forces began military operations in Iraq. As a result of the conflict, the U.N. Secretary General suspended the OFF food distribution system. On March 28, the UNSC unanimously passed resolution 1472 that allows the U.N. to administer Iraq’s OFF program for 45 days (until May 12). As the U.N. takes over the OFF program, WFP’s first priority is to contact recently active suppliers able to rapidly provide food, medicine, and other humanitarian supplies.

• On April 15, UNOHCI reported that preliminary findings of WFP assessments of the Public Distribution System (PDS) facilities in Al Basrah city indicate that one of the main warehouses in Al Basrah, called El-Hartha, is in good condition, contains more than 3,000 metric tons (MT) of mixed commodities. The warehouse is under the protection of Coalition Forces. The two other main warehouses are empty and in good condition. All nine mills in Al Basrah city are intact, in good working order, and have been serving the milling needs of the entire governorate. The milling capacity is 1,600 MT per day.
• According to WFP, all 1,380 food agents in Al Basrah city are in place and are ready to complete an accelerated food distribution cycle for August.
• The Kuwaiti Society for Joint Relief will send 30 trucks containing bottled water to Umm Qasr, Az Zubayr, Al Faw, and Al Basrah during the coming week. The society delivered 472,000 bottles of potable water and 201,000 meals to southern Iraqi sities during the week of April 8.

• The U.S. Government’s Disaster Assistance Response Team (DART) reported that before the current conflict, food agents collected food from Al Basrah to serve 4,108 families (32,364 people, including 638 children aged less than one year) in Umm Qasr.
• Since Coalition forces assumed control of Umm Qasr on April 12, British Coalition forces have hired 30 Iraqi truck drivers to fill water tankers from a Kuwaiti water pipeline and deliver potable water to residents in Umm Qasr.
• The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) is in discussions with Coalition forces to take over the water distribution system in Umm Qasr in the near future. According to the DART, UNICEF will provide water to residents of Umm Qasr and surrounding towns, plans to fill two 10 cubic-meter water bladders located in the town’s main hospital, and repair two pipelines that carry non-potable water from Al Basrah to Umm Qasr.

• A U.N. security assessment team visited Dahuk, As Sulaymaniyah, and Arbil on April 15 and reported "positive findings." The U.N. flight carrying returning international staff is delayed, pending air corridor clearance from Coalition forces.
• UNOHCI reported on April 15 that WFP wheat flour distributions continue. WFP distributed approximately 3,522 MT of wheat flour to assist 384,000 beneficiaries in northern Iraq since April 6.
• The main power supply to Mosul continues to be interrupted, and the Department of Electricity Authority (DEA) technicians are working to repair the lines from Dahuk to Mosul dam, which is controlled by Iraqi Kurdish forces. The main water systems and health facilities receive priority power distributions, according to UNOHCI.
• According to UNOHCI on April 15, World Health Organization (WHO) national staff and ICRC visited Kirkuk. According to WHO, three hospitals that were partially looted are working at 25 percent capacity. All health centers, the main health warehouses, and the Directorate of Health were also partially looted. The City Hospital (formerly called Saddam Hospital) was mostly undamaged, but 140 of 240 staff have left the hospital. WFP reported that transit warehouses in Kirkuk have been completely looted. ICRC reported that emergency water and generator power supplies are available.
• UNOHCI reported on April 15 that the Turkish Ministry for Foreign Affairs gave an International Medical Corps (IMC) representative permission during April 12-13 to cross the border into Iraq. IMC will conduct a one-week assessment of humanitarian needs in northern Iraq. The IMC border crossing is the first crossing of an NGO via Silopi since the beginning of the conflict.

• On April 15, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) reported that third country nationals (TCNs) fleeing into Jordan from Iraq continue to arrive at the Karama border crossing. During the past two days, 108 people have arrived including 40 Yemenis, 15 Egyptians, and 12 Somalis. IOM officials contacted the Yemeni embassy in Jordan, which has assumed responsibility for the Yemeni TCNs. Since the beginning of the war, 917 TCNs have fled into Jordan from Iraq and IOM has assisted 684 to return home. According to IOM, 233 people reside in the Ruweished transit camp run by the Jordanian Red Crescent, with support from IOM, the IFRC, and NGOs.
• On April 14, staff from IOM’s Tehran office and representatives of the Iranian immigration department, the Office of the U.N. Security Coordinator (UNSECOORD), WFP, UNICEF, WHO, the U.N. Development Program (UNDP), the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA), the U.N. Joint Logistics Cell (UNJLC), and Doctors without Borders (MSF) carried out an assessment of Badrah town located 16 kilometers from the Iranian border. Between 2,500 and 3,000 IDPs remain in the town, which has a population of 6,000 people. Other IDPs, initially numbering between 15,000 and 30,000, have returned to homes in Baghdad. The IOM team noted that the town has food supplies that will last until the end of May. The Office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has also initially reported that five police officers have returned to Badrah and continuing needs exist for potable water, food, and medicines. Iranian authorities are providing ice, medicines, and other relief supplies to Badrah to assist IDPs and residents until power is restored.
• Since April 11, 54 TCNs have arrived in Syria and are receiving assistance from IOM.

• On April 15, UNICEF noted that all schools in the north have reopened, classes have resumed, and UNICEF has recommenced school health programs. However, schools in southern and central Iraq remain closed.

• On April 15, WHO reported that seven international WHO staff plan to enter Arbil from Larnaca, Cyprus to re-establish support for activities in the three northern governorates, pending instructions from the U.N. Humanitarian Coordinator for Iraq. WHO has positioned a six-person team in Amman, Jordan and will have a six-person team in Kuwait April 16. WHO has also placed staff in Iran and Syria on standby.

• The United States Government deployed a DART to the region to assess humanitarian needs and coordinate the emergency relief effort. DART members are located in Iraq, Kuwait, Turkey, Jordan, Cyprus, and Qatar and are working closely with U.N. agencies, NGOs, and in coordination with U.S. military Civil Affairs personnel at the Humanitarian Operations Center (HOC).
• On April 13, the DART deployed a two-person team to Baghdad to assess the health and pharmaceutical situation in hospitals and health clinics throughout the city.

• Prior to Coalition military activity in Iraq, USAID’s Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance (USAID/OFDA) provided funding to assist U.N. and NGO preparedness activities. In addition, USAID/OFDA has pre-positioned relief commodities in three warehouses in Jordan, Kuwait, and UAE.
• USAID’s Office of Food for Peace (USAID/FFP) has supported WFP’s planning and preparation efforts to meet the emergency food needs of vulnerable populations in Iraq.
• The State Department’s Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration (State/PRM) provided assistance to UNHCR and IOM to pre-position supplies for 600,000 potential Iraqi refugees and IDPs located at Iraq’s borders, to establish transit camps for TCNs fleeing Iraq, and to pre-position supplies for the transportation of refugees and other migrants.

• USAID/OFDA is supporting NGO emergency assistance activities with quick-impact projects and IDP support.
• USAID/OFDA obligated more than $2.5 million for administrative and travel costs on April 10 that have been in progress for during the past few months.
• USAID/FFP provided emergency food commodities through the Emerson Trust to WFP to meet the food needs of vulnerable Iraqis. USAID/FFP also provided P.L. 480 Title II emergency food assistance to WFP for distribution to food insecure Iraqis and cash to WFP for the purchase of commodities in the region.
• USAID’s Office of Transition Initiatives (USAID/OTI) supported IOM and Development Alternatives, Incorporated (DAI) to prepare for the implementation of the Iraq Transition Initiative (ITI), which supports political stabilization and community recovery activities in post-conflict Iraq.
• State/PRM contributed assistance for the pre-positioning and emergency response activities of UNHCR, ICRC, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), and IOM.

• On April 15, the Government of Ireland released details regarding $5.3 million in humanitarian relief to Iraq. The GOI allocated approximately $2.7 million to the Red Cross and UNICEF. The balance of the GOI contribution will be disributed to NGOs including Concern, GOAL, and Trócaire, as well as to WFP and UNOCHA. [Note: Previous USG fact sheets indicated that the GOI contribution to assistance in Iraq totalled more than $16 million. This total incorrectly included funding to UNICEF, UNHCR, and UNOCHA that is not specifically allocated for Iraq.]

*This compilation was drawn from ReliefWeb and may not be comprehensive.

** This total is approximate as the value of donated commodities is not available in some cases.

• The most effective way people can assist relief efforts is by making cash donations to humanitarian organizations that are conducting relief operations. A list of humanitarian organizations that are accepting cash donations for their activities in the Gulf can be found in the "How Can I Help" section at [www.usaid.gov/iraq].
• USAID encourages cash donations because they: allow aid professionals to procure the exact items needed (often in the affected region); reduce the burden on scarce resources (such staff time, warehouse space, etc); can be transferred very quickly and without transportation costs; support the economy of the disaster-stricken region; ensure culturally, dietary, and environmentally appropriate assistance.
• General information on making donations and volunteering can be found at:
• USAID: www.usaid.gov/iraq -> "How Can I Help?"
• The Center for International Disaster Information: www.cidi.org or 703-276-1914
• InterAction: www.interaction.org -> "Guide to Appropriate Giving"
• Information on relief activities of the humanitarian community can be found at www.reliefweb.org.