Palestinian families threatened with displacement in Baghdad

At least 235 Palestinian refugee families in Baghdad are due to have rent supplements from the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) stopped, it has been reported.

According to the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP), the UN agency’s decision will mean another displacement for these families and force them onto the streets. This follows years of suffering since the early years of the 2003 US invasion of Iraq.

The DFLP called on the UNHCR to review its decision, and continue to provide the Palestinian refugees with financial assistance in its capacity as the international organisation responsible for their social welfare. The UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees has no service programme or presence in Iraq.

The statement by the Front also called on the Palestine Liberation Organisation’s Department for Refugees’ Affairs and the Palestinian Embassy in Iraq, as well as the wider Palestinian community, to assume their responsibilities and ask the UNHCR to reverse its “unjust” decision.

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