125 more flee towards Syrian border

UNHCR reports on another two groups of Palestinians heading to the Syrian border, bringing the number there to about 700: "Another 50 made the hazardous journey from Baghdad to the border four days after 73 Palestinians traveled the same road following the temporary detentions of 30 Palestinian men by militia in the capital last Tuesday... also two buses carrying some 75 Palestinians left Baghdad Monday morning, but at least one of them was unable to make it to the border. The bus was reportedly forced to return to Baghad because roads were blocked by crowds during the religious celebrations for Muharram... A group of 356 has been in the no-man's land between Iraq and Syria since May, while the second group, which has now expanded to some 340 is stuck in El Waleed on the Iraqi side of the border... On Monday UNHCR and its NGO partners provided food, water, kerosene, hygienic items and medicine to El Waleed camp. The ICRC and local NGOs will be bringing more tents and other relief items today. A medical team visited the group on Sunday, but was unable to help one Palestinian man who died Sunday night from a severe asthma attack."

Abbas & Zibari talk at Davos

The Iraqi foreign minister Hoshyar Zibari discussed with Palestinian President Mahmmud Abbas complaints of mistreatment for the Palestinians living in Iraq, at Davos today.

Brothers killed

WAFA, the Palestinian news agency reports that Two Palestinian brothers, Hosaam and Mohammed al-Tallaa', were killed in an attack carried out by an armed militia against the neighbourhood they live in.

73 more Palestinians arrive at Syrian border

UNHCR spokesperson Jennifer Pagonis told a press briefing in Geneva: "At least 73 frightened Palestinians have arrived in El Waleed, at the Iraq-Syrian border, after fleeing Baghdad earlier this week following the detention and release of 30 Palestinian men on Tuesday. Their arrival brings to 593 the number of Palestinians stuck at the Iraq-Syria border, many of them for months. Syria has denied them access and they refuse to return to Baghdad, where Palestinians have been the target of numerous attacks. UNHCR has not yet had a chance to talk to the newly arrived refugees, who arrived at the border on Wednesday night. Along with ICRC [International Committee of the Red Cross] and other partners, we are ensuring that enough food, water and relief items are on site. Additional tents are also being delivered. Conditions at the border are atrocious. It's cold. Clean water has to be trucked in. There is limited access to food. Tents are crowded and unhygienic. Tensions are high. The refugees feel very insecure and some report having been victimized by security officials near the border. The group is in a very vulnerable situation with no solution in sight.

Estimates of the number killed vary widely. In late December, the Palestinian embassy in Baghdad provided UNHCR with a list of 161 Palestinians killed in Baghdad since 2003. In a 20 January statement, the Head of Refugee Affairs for the Palestine Liberation Organisation stated that 520 Palestinians have been killed, and another 140 wounded by militias inside Iraq since March 2003. Since last month, targeted killings and attacks on the homes of Palestinians in the al-Baladiyat, al-Doura, al-Hurriya and al-Jadida neighbourhoods of Baghdad rose dramatically. UNHCR has received reports of least 34 Palestinians killed and five kidnapped over the past two months. There have been at least two attacks on Palestinian residential compounds over the past two months, including an armed assault on the Palestinian neighbourhoods in al-Baladiyat on 13 December in which at least nine Palestinians were reportedly killed and 20 wounded. We have several reports of kidnappings and murders of Palestinians, some of whose bodies were found with signs of torture. Death threats have increased. Harassment at work has prompted some to stop working, leaving them without a livelihood. With militia threats increasing, families are continually moving between existing Palestinian settlements and abandoned buildings or makeshift dwellings in Sunni-dominated areas less accessible to Shi'a militias. And many are trying to leave Iraq altogether."

Declaration launched in UK

The UK based Middle East Cultural Association and Iraq Solidarity Campaign have been monitoring the situation of the Palestinian community in Iraq for a few months on their Baqaa Camp blog, and today initiated a Declaration , signed by various organisations, calling for an end to the violence and protection of the Palestinians.

Dubai paper calls on Arab countries to help

Today's editorial in the Dubai-based Khaleej Times argues: "Syria’s stand is that it has done its bit by taking in some 250 Palestinians in May, and that it’s the other Arab nations’ turn now. There’s merit in the argument; this is a collective responsibility. The Palestinians in Iraq need all our attention. The cause being so dear, this here is a call of duty for the governments in the region; they cannot afford to look the other way."

More interviews concerning Tuesday's incidents

IRIN interviews and Iraqi police officer concerning detention of 17 men in al-Batawyen district: "There was sniper fire against a government building from the rooftop of the al-Batawyen house in which they [the Palestinians] were staying. But police later released them when they found them innocent." As regards detention of 13 men in al-Amin district the police officer said. "The second incident was just to check their legal documents." UNHCR said on Wednesday that what happened to the men during their abduction was unclear.

IRIN spoke to Khalid al-Qudsi, a 55-year-old Palestinian who lives in the west Baghdad neighbourhood of Iskan and whose relatives were among those arrested on Tuesday and who were heading to the Syrian border on Thursday. "I heard from my cousin yesterday night and he was really terrified. He told me that they can't stand it any more and that they are leaving for Syria with other families. He told me that they would prefer to live under the harsh conditions at the Syrian borders than to meet instant death in Baghdad. I have not heard from my daughter and her three kids who are stranded at the Syrian border. I last heard from her two months ago when she sent me a letter with a taxi driver. They were in a very bad situation and she said that one of her sons, who is seven years old, was sick."

Panos Moumtzis, head of UNRWA in Syria, asked Arab countries to help the Palestinians who have been stranded for months at the Iraqi-Syrian border: "We appeal to their common sense and generosity to allow them in. Having pregnant women, children and newborn babies there under snow and rain is no solution."

Interview with man abducted yestarday

The Washington post interviews one the fleeing Palestinians: The shouting in his Baghdad apartment building woke Luay Mohammed seconds before intruders broke down his door. The men, some wearing police uniforms, entered before dawn demanding identification cards, Mohammed recalled. They tore the doors off the closet, threw the television on the floor and hauled Mohammed and his two barefoot brothers outside to be blindfolded. They and 14 other men were taken to what they thought was a government office, where a man others kept calling "sir" spoke to their huddled group. "You are Palestinians. Why are you still living in Iraq?" Mohammed recalled the man saying. "You have 48 hours to leave." Within 24 hours, Mohammed was gone. The 36-year-old was among dozens of people who loaded their meager belongings onto buses at dawn Wednesday inside Baghdad's main Palestinian enclave in the Baladiyat neighborhood. They drove north toward the Syrian border, joining a growing exodus of Palestinians now following their familiar story line: an unwelcome people searching for a home... Iraqi officials said 17 Palestinian men were detained Tuesday for "investigation purposes" because they seemed suspicious, according to Brig. Gen. Saad Abdullah of the Interior Ministry. During the detention, the officials discussed steps to "get the approvals for them to be refugees in other countries," he said. The article also interviews another Palestinian who's wife was injured by a mortar last Ramadan.

Differing accounts about role of Mahdi Army

Aqeel Hussein reports for the Telegraph: Sheik Mahmoud al-Hassani, a spokesman for the Mahdi Army, said: "We are sure that all the Palestinians in Iraq are involved in killing the Shi'ite people and they have to pay the price now. They lived off our blood under Saddam. We were hungry with no food and they were comfortable with full bellies. They should leave now, or they will have to pay." (al-Hassani seems to be the leader of a fringe movement that broke away from Muqtada Sadr, so the Telegraph may be mistaken in calling him a spokesman for the Mahdi Army, which is anyway very diverse. Another report attributes "the final warning" to Palestinians in Iraq to leave the country within a month, or "pay the price" to "Muhammad al-Husseini, spokesman for Muqtada Al-Sadr's Mahdi Army". It is unclear which name is correct.)

Kareem Zakia, a 61-year-old Palestinian, said his son, Yeha Ahmed, was kidnapped and killed in the Karada area of Baghdad two weeks ago. "The kidnappers called me and told me that they had taken my son because he came from Palestine and all the Palestinians support the Sunni terrorists. I found my son's body the next day with many holes in his belly made by a drill." Ahmed Mahmood, 26, a Palestinian in Baladiat, said he had paid a ransom of nearly $6,000 to free his brother, Murad, 38. The kidnappers in Sadr City, a Shi'ite area of Baghdad, told him where to collect his brother, but he arrived to find his brother had been killed. "We found him dead with signs of torture on his body," Mr. Mahmood said. "They called us the next day and said, 'We killed your brother because all the Palestinians in Iraq love Saddam Hussein and this is what will happen to you and all your families.' " Capt. Sary Farhan, a police spokesman, said people had been arrested for the killings but later released. "All these criminals belong to Shi'ite militias and were released a few days after. They have strong backing in the government."

However the Palestinian Authority's envoy, Dalil al-Qassus, denied that the Mahdi Army have threatened Palestinians: "The Mahdi Army wouldn't act this way, since it is a confessional Islamic army and hence wouldn't harm its Palestinian brethren." He said he had "many contacts with Sadr's faction, including several parliamentarians... The Palestinians in Iraq are suffering in the same way as Iraqi citizens mainly through the instability and security problems as well as acts of aggression carried out by unknown armed group."

90 flee Baghdad after yesterday's abductions

UNHCR reports that "a group of up to 90 terrified Palestinian men, women and children fled Baghdad in two rented buses early Wednesday morning headed towards the Syrian border, a day after some 30 Palestinian men were taken from their apartments by unidentified uniformed men who later released them."

Seventeen Palestinian men from Baghdad's Hay El Nidal neighbourhood were forcibly taken from their homes early Tuesday morning and released seven hours later. Another 13 were reportedly detained in the Al Amin area near Baladiyat and released shortly thereafter. What happened to the men during their abduction remains unclear. But the men and their families were clearly traumatized by the ordeal and afraid to provide any details. All Palestinian families living in a Hay El Nidal apartment building rented by UNHCR had abandoned their homes by Wednesday. Some fled to other parts of the city, while others joined the group headed toward Syria.

The abductions caused great panic among the Palestinian community. Some Palestinians told UNHCR they "feared the attack of militias at any time." Many other Palestinians told UNHCR that they wanted to leave as well, but couldn't because they lacked proper documents, or because they still have family members in Baghdad who cannot go. "Of all the groups being targeted in Iraq, the Palestinians are the most vulnerable as they literally have nowhere else to flee, and in many cases have been denied travel documents," said Andrew Harper, the Geneva-based senior Iraq operations manager. "The international community must act now to help these people. A safe haven needs to be found immediately, outside Iraq."

Saleem al-Za'noun, Head of the Palestinian National Council, said the killing of Palestinian refugees in Iraq at the hand of armed militias may lead to genocide. He said that the world is raising no finger at this aggression which is carried out against the Palestinian refugees in public and at daytime. He also said that the Palestinian leadership demanded the Iraqi brothers to protect the Palestinian refugees in Iraq.

17 Palestinians kidnapped in Baghdad

Men allegedly wearing uniforms of the Iraqi security forces abducted a group of 17 Palestinians in Baghdad early on Tuesday, UNHCR said. Several uniformed men entered the building rented by UNHCR at 5 am, broke doors and windows and took away 17 Palestinian men but left women behind, the agency's spokesman Ron Redmond told reporters. Some of the Palestinians were released later on Tuesday, he said. But Redmond was unable to say how many and how they were released. "Palestinians are increasingly targeted for killings, kidnapping, harassment and other abuses," he said. "It's very difficult for Palestinians to move because of a lack of documentation." They were often unable to get the necessary paperwork to leave the country, Redmond said. "Many of those in Baghdad who have tried to leave have been turned back by militia." He continued: "It is urgent that international support is found to bring at least a temporary solution for Palestinians from Iraq." He noted that UNHCR had already tried, to no avail, to secure them entry into Jordan and Syria, return to the Palestinian territories with the permission of Israel, relocation to other Arab states, and resettlement outside the region. "At the same time, we continue to advocate for better protection of the Palestinian community inside Iraq. But under the present circumstances, return to Iraq is no option unless security is restored. Right now, it's an untenable situation for the Palestinians and it is deteriorating on a daily basis."

Motion in British Parliament

An Early Day Motion (EDM 709) has been initiated in the British Parliament by John Austin MP, and has been signed by 35 MPs so far: "That this House expresses its great concern for the safety and welfare of the Palestinian population in Iraq and for many of those who have fled; notes that since 2003, the Palestinian community in Iraq has faced escalating forms of insecurity, including evictions, discrimination, torture, kidnapping, targeted killings and shelling of Palestinian neighbourhoods, and that these attacks have come from both government forces and insurgents; draws attention to the numbers of Palestinians who have fled Iraq or who have been displaced internally; notes that borders with Jordan and Syria are now closed and that many refugees are stranded in makeshift, temporary refugee camps at Ruwayshid in Jordan, Al-Hol in Syria and in the border area of Iraq and Syria at Al-Tanf; notes that they are receiving little or no humanitarian aid or support and that their plight is desperate; asks the Government to urge the United Nations to intervene immediately to provide both aid and security; and calls upon the Department for International Development to give all possible assistance to UNHCR in this task and in its efforts to support the 20,000 Palestinians stranded in Baghdad."

Human Rights Watch comments

Bill Frelick, refugee policy director at the New York-based Human Rights Watch, said Jordan and Syria are unwilling to take in Palestinian refugees, including more than 300 stranded in “no man’s land” on the Jordanian border in harsh desert conditions. He said, "They feel they’ve already paid their dues to Palestinian refugees."

Ismail Haniyeh's comments

Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh today called on the Iraqis to unite, appealing for an end to sectarian bloodshed in the country. "We call for our brothers in Iraq to unite Iraq, and to unite the Iraqi people and to stop the shedding of Iraqi blood". He also said "We have almost 20,000 Palestinians living in Iraq facing assassinations, killings and kidnapping".

Zakaria al-Agha, head of refugee affairs for the Palestinian Liberation Organisation, said about 520 Palestinians in Iraq had disappeared over the past three years. Some were later found killed, with torture marks on their bodies, he added, “Who ever speaks the Palestinian accent in Baghdad is snatched and killed."

UNAMI HRO nov-dec report

The latest report by the UN Assistance Mission in Iraq's Human Rights Office outlines the perilous situation of the Palestinians. See here for a document containing relevant clippings from all UNAMI reports since July 2005.

Killings, threats, intimidations, and kidnappings are becoming the norm for Palestinians in Iraq. Many of these actions are reportedly carried out by the militias wearing police or special forces uniform. Most of the victims are found dead or simply disappear. Sixteen Palestinians were kidnapped and 9 killed during the reporting period. HRO received unconfirmed reports that many victims were interrogated and killed in illegal detention centres run by militias. Many residents have reported receiving threatening letters demanding they evacuate their houses and many of the abandoned houses were later occupied allegedly by members of militias or their affiliates.

On 2 November, two individuals were killed in front of their parents by the Iraqi National Guard in Al Fadil area in Baghdad. On 27 November, the body of 72-year-old Tawfiq Abdul Khaliq was found bearing signs of torture. On 13 November, unidentified gunmen killed a female Palestinian in Al Mashtel area in Baghdad. Her house was occupied by militias and when she asked MNF-I for help, the militia torched her house before departing. Other Palestinians were targeted and kidnapped for ransom and then released or killed. On 30 November, a taxi driver, was kidnapped at the Al Habibia area and then released. A shopkeeper was taken from his shop in Al Mashtel area on 2 December. The kidnappers came in one police and three civilian cars. His body was found on 7 December at the Baghdad morgue.

Attacks on the Palestinian compound in Baladiyat in Baghdad for instance are frequent in order to compel Palestinians to leave their dwellings and their belongings. Baladiyat is located in the midst of a Shiite area and threats are usually followed by small arms fire and mortar attacks. In the past two months, at least six incidents of organized attacks on the Palestinian compound have been recorded, such as on 26 November, when a group of gunmen stormed the quarter and demanded Palestinians leave or be shot. On 9 December, three mortar shells landed in Al Baladiyat wounding ten. On 13 December, mortar attacks continued to rain on the compound for three hours, killing up to 11 and injuring more. There were reports that the area was cordoned off by police, according to some accounts, and by militias according to others, thus preventing injured Palestinians to reach hospitals.

HRO and UNHCR maintain regular contacts and continue to monitor the situation of Palestinians. On at least two occasions in December, UNAMI had to call upon MNF-I to intervene while the Palestinian compound was being attacked. The police and MNF-I were reported to have arrived after the attacks had ended, and briefly patrolled the area. UNHCR reported that 350 Palestinians from Iraq (who recently left Baghdad) remain near the Al Tanf border crossing between Iraq and Syria in a makeshift refugee camp located in the no man's land between both borders. They have been denied entry by the Syrian government and they refused to return to Iraq. As a result, they have been living in increasingly desperate circumstances for the past six months. There are 131 Palestinians still within Iraq near Al Tanf border. Similarly, at the border with Jordan, 7 Palestinians remain between the Jordanian and the Iraqi border.

First Palestinians arrive in Canada

UNHCR reports on the resettlement of one family in Ottawa, part of a group of 63 Palestinian refugees that the Canadian government has agreed to resettle from Ruweished camp.

UNHCR confident of resettling the 97 Palestinians on Jordan-Iraq border

UNHCR said they were confident about the resettlement of 97 Palestinian refugees from Iraq who are in Ruweished refugee camp, 50 km from the Jordanian-Iraqi border, after 49 Palestinians left the tent camp for Canada last month (most had been in the camp for more than 3 years). "UNHCR will aggressively look for resettlement opportunities for the refugees in Ruweished and once that has been achieved the camp will be closed permanently," said Rana Sweis, Public Information Assistant at UNHCR, Jordan. UNHCR Representative in Amman, Robert Breen said the UN agency was also exploring options to have the refugees relocated in Jordan in a "less hostile environment. The refugees continue to suffer from extreme cold in winter and extreme heat in summer; the real solution is to have them moved to a third country, but in the meantime we want to make their life better."

Palestinians at funeral appeal to Hamas

The Baghdad correspondent for Mafkarat al-Islam reported that a condolence meeting was held for 30-year-old Ahmad Ma'lah, a Palestinian murdered by the Jaysh al-Mahdi militia in the al-Baladiyat section of Baghdad two days earlier. At the meeting the father of the murdered man – who was killed after the Jaysh al-Mahdi abducted him from the barbershop where he worked – called on Hamas to take a clear stand on the torture and murder to which Palestinians have been subjected in Iraq.

Al-Awda launches campaign

Al-Awda, The Palestine Right to Return Coalition in the US, has launched a campaign on behalf of Palestinians trapped in Iraq. They have produced a factsheet, photos from al-Tanaf camp on the Iraq/Syria border, and an action alert calling on people to:

1. Contact the US Department of State to demand that the American occupation forces in Iraq put an end to anti-Palestinian attacks. According to the Geneva Conventions, the US is obliged and expected to protect all civilians in areas it is occupying by force.
2. Write and call the Syrian embassy in Washington, D.C. to ask that the stranded Palestinians on Syria's borders be admitted into Syria without delay.
3. Write and call the Jordanian embassy in Washington, D.C. and ask that the Palestinian refugees stranded in Al-Ruweished camp be admitted into Jordan without any further delay:
4. Write and call the Iraqi "embassy" in Washington, D.C. and demand an immediate end to the persecution of Palestinian refugees in Iraq.
5. Write and call United Nations offices in New York and demand that:

• The United Nations agencies do their utmost to ensure that the Palestinian population in Iraq is protected in the interim.
• That UNRWA and UNHCR provide the refugees stranded at the Iraqi-Syrian and Iraqi-Jordanian border with shelter, basic and medical needs until their situation is resolved.
• UNRWA and UNHCR help Syria and Jordan as needed, to admit the stranded Palestinians.
• Demand that The United Nations act to ensure implementation of the inalienable natural, legal, individual and collective rights of all Palestinian refugees to return to their homes and land of origin in Palestine per United Nations Resolution 194. This resolution has been affirmed more than 130 times by the United Nations General Assembly since 1948 with the imposition of the state of Israel, and the expulsion and dispossession of the refugees.