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Kurdistan Regional Government
Representation in the United States
Washington D.C.
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Welcome to our September 2020 Humanitarian Bulletin |
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The American University of Kurdistan (AUK) delivers the second shipment of personal protective equipment donations to the KRG’s Ministry of Health. |
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The trauma of the genocide committed by ISIS against the Yazidi community in August 2014 continues to haunt nearly all Yazidi community. A recent report published by Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), an international humanitarian medical non-governmental organization of French origin, asserts that the community is experiencing a severe mental health crisis, including a high number of suicides and suicide attempts. However, lack of funding, resources, and capacity has left the community in a precarious situation.
Sheren, a Yazidi mother whose husband and son were killed by ISIS in August 2014, committed suicide by setting herself on fire in the Khanke IDP Camp in early September. Currently, about 220,000 displaced Yazidis are living in the Kurdistan Region, and Sheren, like hundreds of others, was one of the displaced who was suffering from severe depression.
The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) has been shouldering 70% of the cost of providing essential services for the displaced persons in Kurdistan, which amounts to $982 million per year, but the deep economic recession has constrained its ability to meet their needs adequately. According to Hoshang Mohammad, Head of the KRG's Joint Crisis Coordination Center (JCC), lack of funding has jeopardized the future of over 33,000 displaced students inside and outside camps.
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HIGHLIGHTS
COVID-19 in Kurdistan:
Total cases tested: 414,057+
Total Positive cases: 41,732
Total Recovered: 26,921
Total deaths: 1,536
Total active cases: 13,275
Source: KRG Coronavirus Dashboard
A total of 990,707 refugees and IDPs are registered in the Kurdistan Region: 260,767 refugees and 729,940 IDPs.
A total of 6,419 IDPs and 1,862 refugees returned to their places of origin or migrated out of the country, and 18 IDPs and refugees arrived in the Kurdistan Region in August 2020.
About 220,000 Yazidis and 51,540 Christians remain displaced in the Kurdistan Region.
More than half of the displaced people are women and children.
Source KRG-JCC
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The percentage of IDPs and refugees living in camps and urban areas in the Kurdistan Region |
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The total number of IDPs and refugees living in 37 camps across the Kurdistan Region
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KRG's Joint Crisis Coordination Center |
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On the bright side, in its Iraq Country Brief published on September 1, the World Food Program said, "The government has facilitated and supported the return of willing families to Sinjar in Ninewa governorate." Accordingly, in recent weeks, about 6,616 people returned from camps in Duhok, and 4,905 individuals from out-of-camp locations have returned to Sinjar.
Meanwhile, the coronavirus pandemic in the Kurdistan Region continues to rise exponentially. A total of 41,732 cases have been confirmed across Erbil, Slemani, Duhok, and Halabja governorates, of which 26,921 have recovered, and more than 1,536 have died. Consequently, the restrictions on group gatherings in public places and government offices continue to be mandatory; the travel ban between cities and provinces will continue, and most public places will remain closed.
To learn more about the humanitarian situation or how you can help support vulnerable communities in Kurdistan, please contact Delovan Barwari at the KRG Representation in the United States.
Delovan Barwari
Director of Public and Humanitarian Affairs
Email: delovan.barwari@us.gov.krd
Twitter: @DelovanBarwari
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