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Easy Targets: Palestinians in Iraq May 9, 2005
From the pain of sanctions to internal oppression to a full-scale Western military onslaught, Iraqis have had to deal with it all in the past decades. Palestinian refugees are one of the most vulnerable minority communities in Iraq today. With the Anglo-American ousting of Saddam Hussein, Palestinians have had to face a new threat, a backlash from the Iraqi people themselves. In the Nakba of 1948, approximately 5000 Palestinian refugees, mostly from the coastal cities of Haifa and Jaffa, fled to Iraq, the majority settled in the capital, Baghdad. Descendents of this group now represent about 35,000. Estimates vary, but it seems that at least an equal number found their way to Iraq in the years after 1948; most had been expelled from other countries where they had originally held refugee status and were seeking work (those expelled from Kuwait during the early 1990s, for example). The United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) had limited contact with the refugees during the previous regime, but have currently registered around 22,700 refugees. However, the commission admits that there are many more refugees that they cannot reach because of the security situation. The only Palestinians recognized as refugees by the Iraqi government were those who had entered the country before September 25, 1958. Although not given citizenship, 1948 refugees were given residency permitting exit and re-entry, whereas those who came to Iraq later, as a result of the 1967 occupation, for example, were not automatically given residency rights. In regards to employment, wages, and retirement benefits, Palestinians had the same rights as Iraqi citizens. Refugees were not provided with UNRWA assistance as those in Jordan, Lebanon, or Syria, but the Iraqi government gave free education at primary and secondary level. Palestinians were not permitted to own land or property until a change of law in 1997. Saddam Hussein, like other Arab leaders, claimed this was in order to prevent Palestinians from settling and losing their right to return (although activists have often seen it as an excuse to treat Palestinians as second class to host-country nationals). In Iraq, unlike other countries such as Egypt, refugees were supported by rent-free or heavily government-subsidized accommodation. Thus, while Palestinians still complained of internal racism and discrimination in the job market and other areas, Palestinians were in a relatively good position under Saddam Hussein.
That security crumbled overnight with the Anglo-American occupation. With the fall of a man who had, for whatever reasons, championed their cause, the Palestinians became a target of the anger and frustrations of the Iraqi people. Seen as collaborators and favorites of the dictator, landlords who were no longer subsidized by the government evicted Palestinian tenants. Resented for their financial privileges by an Iraqi population poverty stricken due to Western sanctions, many Palestinians became destitute once more and feared for their physical safety. The UNHCR says over 400 families were evicted, other estimates say nearer to a thousand. The priority now is for material assistance and physical protection. In April 2003, a new refugee camp was established in the Haifa Sports Club in Baghdad, housing around 300 families in tents provided by UNHCR. Other families found shelter with family and friends. As in 1948, Palestinians are again vulnerable to the elements, living in an unsafe militarized environment, with minimal basic services such as electricity and water, and inadequate sewage systems. The occupying forces did little to address one of the numerous social disasters they had caused. The Palestinian and Iraqi Red Crescent Society are working to provide basic services, but resources are stretched to the limits. Several hundred Palestinian refugees fled Baghdad, hoping to make it across the border into Jordan. As they reached the border, the Jordanian authorities put around 800 people in the Al-Ruwaishad Camp, just over the border. Others did not even get that far and remained in “No Man’s Land.” Officially, this area is Jordanian territory, but the Jordanians do not classify these refugees as having entered Jordan. The UNHCR has access to provide basic assistance, but frustration runs high as people are held for many months. While there remains no stability for Iraqi nationals in Iraq, there certainly can be no proper planning or legal status for Palestinians. Of course, the Palestinian crisis as a whole will not be resolved until people are allowed to return to Palestine or are compensated by the Israelis. But even arranging a short term future in Iraq is currently impossible with the bloody chaos around them. The future is bleak. Resources:
External links last accessed January 18, 2005.
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