Monday, January 22, 2007

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."