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EDITORIAL
Issue 121 – July 31, 2008
NCCI WEEKLY HIGHLIGHT
Civil-military: the Africa’s perspective
U.S. Civil Military Imbalance for Global Engagement:
In his introduction to the 2002 National Security Strategy, President
Bush said: "America is now threatened less by conquering states than
we are by failing ones." Failing states with weak state institutions
struggle to deliver services to their population or to control corruption
and are at risk of ongoing conflict. When these countries descend into
civil war, massive flows of refugees and large-scale human
displacement lead to further regional and global instability. Nowhere
is this more of a challenge than in Africa.
There is broad agreement that combating today's global threats
requires a balanced, integrated approach with coordinated defense,
diplomacy and development efforts. In practice, the Pentagon is
largely dictating America's approach to foreign policy. The nation's
foreign aid budget is too low; its civilian capacity to construct and
carry out effective, long-term policies to rebuild states is too weak;
interventions abroad are often unilateral when multilateral solutions
could be more effective; and the military, which is well trained to
invade countries, not to build them up, is playing an increasingly
active and well-funded role in promoting development and democracy.
Even Defense Secretary Robert Gates noted that U.S. soldiers
conducting development and assistance activities in countries where
they frequently don't speak the language is "no replacement for the
real thing – civilian involvement and expertise."
The rising military role in shaping U.S. global engagement is a
challenge to the next president. Foreign assistance represents less than
one percent of the federal budget, while defense spending is 20%. The
U.S. military has over 1.5 million uniformed active duty employees and
over 10,100 civilian employees, while the Department of State has
some 6,500 permanent employees. Although several high-level task
forces and commissions have emphasized the urgent need to
modernize our aid infrastructure and increase sustainable
development activities, such assistance is increasingly being overseen by
military institutions whose policies are driven by the Global War on
Terror, not by the war against poverty. Between 1998 and 2005, the
percentage of Official Development Assistance the Pentagon controlled
exploded from 3.5% to nearly 22%, while the percentage controlled by
the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) shrunk from
65% to 40%.
This civil-military imbalance has particular ramifications for Africa,
where Global War on Terror imperatives do not address the continent's
biggest needs for security assistance. The U.S. is only helping four
African countries transform their armies and security agencies into
professional organizations that protect citizens rather than abuse them.
Resources are allocated in a manner that does not reflect the continent's
most pressing priorities. For example, the U.S. has allocated $49.65
million for reforming a 2,000-strong Liberian army to defend the four
million people of that country. In contrast, it only plans to spend $5.5
million in 2009 to help reform a 164,000-strong army in the DR Congo,
a country with 65 million people where Africa's "first world war"
claimed the lives of over five million people.
Two case studies emphasize the problems inherent in the U.S. approach.
Military dominance over reform programs in Liberia has resulted in a
policy focused solely on restructuring Liberia's army by expensive
private contractors, DynCorp and Pacific Architects and Engineers.
Meanwhile, intelligence, judiciary, and prison agencies are sadly
neglected. In the DR Congo, the State Department has played a very
active role in facilitating dialogue among belligerents and is concerned
about the humanitarian situation in the east, but the Defense
Department is virtually ignoring the nation's desperate need of military
reform. As a result, an inadequately resourced security sector reform
program has contributed to the Congolese army becoming a major
source of insecurity for civilian communities.
The U.S. military's new Africa Command (AFRICOM) is poised to
become the dominant influence over U.S. policy on the continent.
Originally, AFRICOM was promoted as integrating military and civilian
agencies for "humanitarian assistance, civic action… and response to
natural disasters." After much criticism from African nations and the
international humanitarian community, the new AFRICOM
Commander is now emphasizing the value the Command can add to the
many U.S. military programs already operating in Africa.
AFRICOM should focus on two unashamedly military/political roles
that will strengthen peace and security in Africa: a) assisting African
NCCI Weekly Highlight
Issue 121 – 07/31/2008
2
countries with defense sector reform; and b) supporting Africa's
regional organizations in building conflict management and standby
force capacity. The Command's legitimacy will ultimately be determined
by its ability to work with the African Union and UN operations to
address Africa's principal security challenge – mobilizing sufficient
resources to provide a secure, stable and well-governed environment in
which human rights are protected and promoted and where business
can thrive. Assisting with the coordination of security sector and
peacekeeping assistance should be strongly emphasized in its mandate
to help national governments absorb the plethora of uncoordinated
initiatives from various coalitions of donor countries.
Another priority for AFRICOM should be to enhance peacekeeping
capacity-building programs. As a matter of urgency, AFRICOM should
establish a core of civil-military expertise specifically related to UN
peace operations in Africa. With the demand for African peacekeepers
far outstripping the supply of adequately trained and equipped forces,
AFRICOM has the potential to increase the number of trained soldiers
for UN or AU peace operations.
AFRICOM could also enhance international cooperation for delivering
more sustainable support to African efforts to establish peace and
security. Instead of having three commanders that deal with Africa as a
third or fourth priority, an informed, consistent and coherent
engagement with Africa could be established. However, AFRICOM's
current meager budget for bilateral security cooperation falls far short of
what is needed to have true credibility and impact. Currently, no funds
are allocated for security sector and governance capacity-building for
African nations. Instead, funding is being requested for Global War on
Terror priorities.
While AFRICOM can improve engagement with African nations, more
effective non-military support is needed to provide the basic
foundations of stability that would encourage refugees to return home
and would meet Africa's enormous development challenges. Although
the current administration is promoting a range of initiatives to redress
the imbalance in U.S. instruments for global engagement, these are
aimed at a "quick fix" for long-broken machinery.
The next president must strengthen civilian professional capacity to
carry out diplomatic and development operations. More funding is
needed to address the current 17 to 1 spending imbalance in staffing and
resources between defense and diplomatic/development operations,
and to reduce the use of contractors in foreign assistance programs. A
thorough assessment of both civilian and military capacities to achieve
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3
developmental goals must also be conducted.
Doing a few things well in Africa, and doing the right thing in Africa, can
have a positive impact on 53 UN member states, help uplift 80% of the
world's poorest people, and win friends and influence in the most
under-governed continent in the world. If the establishment of
AFRICOM, the strengthening of the State Department's Africa Bureau
and USAID programs in Africa can be seen to produce positive results,
the effort could serve as a model for U.S. global engagement.
This is the executive summary of a Relief International report
written by Mark Malan (please see:
http://www.refugeesinternational.org/content/article/detail/10763)
---------------- ---------------- ------Salaam,
NCCI Team
NCCI Weekly Highlight
Issue 121 – 07/31/2008
4
____________________________________
Humanitarian Updates
From NCCI, NGOs’ reports from the field and UN agencies
Operational Humanitarian Space
-
Strenghtening Humanitarian Assistance, support for non-self
governing teritories among issues addressed, as economic and social
council adopts 23 text
Source: UN
Document: Report
Date: July 24 , 2008
Access: Open
The Economic and Social Council today concluded the work of its general segment, adopting 15 resolutions and
8 decisions, including on strengthening the coordination of emergency humanitarian assistance, United Nations
support to non-self-governing territories, and promoting full employment and decent work for all. On the
penultimate day of its 2008 substantive session, the Council also concluded its coordination segment, which ran
from 7 to 9 July, with the consensus adoption of a resolution on the United Nations role in implementing the
Council’s 2007 Ministerial Declaration on “Strengthening the efforts to eradicate poverty and hunger, including
through the global partnership for development”. Recognizing that the challenge of eradicating poverty and
hunger required a comprehensive and multidimensional response by the entire United Nations system, the
resolution requested the world body’s funds, programmes and agencies, acting within their mandates, “to make
further progress towards more comprehensive, coherent and multidimensional approaches in the formulation of
their policies, programmes and operations supporting the eradication of poverty and hunger”.
-
Top UN official speaks out against ‘vicious’ attacks on Iraqi civilians
Source: UN
Document: Press Relase
Date: July 28 , 2008
Access: Open
The United Nations envoy to Iraq has strongly condemned today’s bombings in Baghdad and Kirkuk which have
left dozens of civilians dead and hundreds more injured, and follow a deadly attack on Sunday in which seven
pilgrims were shot to death in Mada’in. The Secretary-General’s Special Representative, Staffan de Mistura,
described these attacks as “vicious crimes committed against the defenceless by those who will stop at nothing
in their quest to reignite sectarian and ethnic conflict,” in a statement issued by the UN Assistance Mission for
Iraq (UNAMI).
-
UN emergency aid fund hands out $30 million to projects in seven
countries
Source: UN
Document: Press Relase
Date: July 30 , 2008
Access: Open
The United Nations relief chief announced today that the world body’s Central Emergency Response Fund
(CERF) has allocated $30 million to support UN agencies conducting vital aid work in seven countries. Projects
in Afghanistan, Burundi, Chad, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), Iraq, Sri Lanka and Syria
will all receive funding as a result of today’s announcement, which marks the second round of allocations this
year from CERF for under-funded emergencies. Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs John Holmes
said funds given by CERF “are often the last source of hope” for people facing crises.
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5
Humanitarian Needs and Assistance
-
Local NGOs appeal for more financial support
Source: IRIN
Document: Article (English and Arabic)
Date: July 24, 2008
Access: Open
An umbrella group of over 1,000 non-governmental organisations (NGOs) appealed on 24 July for large-scale
financial support from the government and “effective rather than symbolic” assistance from international
organisations. “Iraqi NGOs get no direct financial support from the Iraqi government, unlike other NGOs around
the world,” said Basil al-Azawi, head of the group, which is based in Baghdad and known as the Commission for
Civil Society Enterprises. “The only support local NGOs get is from international bodies and this support is
subject to annoying bureaucratic measures; it is also limited and conditional,” al-Azawi added.
- Global Humanitarian Forum
Source: ICVA
Document: Article
Date: July 1, 2008
Access: Open
42 participants from the three pillars of the humanitarian community – the United Nations, other
intergovernmental bodies, the Red Cross/Red Crescent Movement; and non-governmental organizations –
came together in Geneva from 1-2 July in the second meeting of the Global Humanitarian Platform. Participants
came together in a spirit of collaboration to consider concrete ways of strengthening their partnerships at all
levels in order to improve the quality of their humanitarian response. “We need to strengthen our relationships
before crises occur,” one participant urged “so that when there is a crisis we are able to work together to
respond more effectively.” Many participants noted that cooperation between humanitarian actors at the global
level is important, but is even more important in the field, which is where collaboration is most needed.
-
Iraq: Expanding Response to Humanitarian Crisis Revised Emergency
Appeal No.MDRIQ003
Source: UNICEF
Document: Report
Date: July 29, 2008
Access: Open
This revised Emergency Appeal replaces the Emergency Appeal no. MDRIQ003 issued on 12 February 2008.
The original Emergency Appeal sought CHF 20,679,198 (USD 18,991,820 or EUR 12,799,985) in cash, kind, or
services to support the Iraqi Red Crescent (Iraqi RC) to assist 150,000 families (900,000 beneficiaries) with food
and non-food relief items; 50,000 beneficiaries in public health in emergencies; and 10,000 disabled individuals.
This revised Emergency Appeal seeks a total of CHF 5,377,198 (USD 5,271,763 or EUR 3,339,874) in cash,
kind, and services to provide assistance and support to the National Society to assist 50,000 beneficiaries in
public health in emergencies and 10,000 disabled individuals for the remainder of 2008.
- Iraq: ICRC helps bomb victims in Baghdad and Kirkuk
Source: ICRC
Document: Article
Date: July 30, 2008
Access: Open
The explosions occurred at a busy time of the day, resulting in a high number of casualties among civilians and
a major influx of victims at local medical facilities. "Helping hospitals to cope with emergencies and save lives is
a priority for the ICRC in Iraq", said Juan-Pedro Schaerer, head of the ICRC's delegation there. Al Nafis Hospital
for Heart Surgery in Baghdad received supplies sufficient to treat more than 50 blast victims, while Kirkuk
General Hospital and Azadi Kirkuk Hospital received supplies for the treatment of over 300
The ICRC is deeply concerned about the serious violations of international humanitarian law and calls on parties
to the conflict to halt any deliberate targeting of civilians.
NCCI Weekly Highlight
Issue 121 – 07/31/2008
6
Armed violence and humanitarian action in urban areas
-
Source: ICRC
Document: Article
Date: July 29, 2008
Access: Open
Some researchers in the field of social sciences consider it dangerous to talk of “urban violence” and hence to
territorialize violence. In their view, emphasizing the location could mean that the far more drastic situation of
people living in rural areas is overlooked. To apply sectoral thinking to violence is tantamount to falling in with a
trend dictated by the excessive media coverage of urban violence. It is to run the risk of demonizing towns – the
melting pot of all the phobias of western societies, which sometimes make urban areas out to be more
dangerous than they really are. There is a need to define the actual subject more precisely; are we discussing
violence against towns (as in a siege or a blockade, for example)? Violence in towns? Violence as a natural
phenomenon of a town, or rather its shanty towns, which are experiencing uncontrolled growth while, at the
same time, there are more and more security compounds guarded by private companies? It is easy to
understand why the issue needs to be clarified.
-
CWS emergency appeal: 2008 assistance to Iraqi refugees and
displaced
Source: CWS
Document: Article
Date: July 28, 2008
Access: Open
The population in Iraq has suffered for years as a consequence of the US-led war in 2003 and, earlier, sanctions
that were imposed after the Gulf War in 1991. The widespread insecurity due to the collapse of the regime of
Saddam Hussein and the absence of adequate security forces forced large parts of the population to take refuge
in other parts of Iraq and in neighboring countries, in Europe and North America. There are up to 2.5 million
internally displaced people (IDPs), according to UNHCR figures in January 2008, and those displaced continue
to be in need of food, water, housing, medical care and education for their children. The Iraqi Red Crescent
Society estimates that 38 percent of IDPs are women and children. Meanwhile, the number of people who left
Iraq is estimated to be more than 2.5 million. Syria alone has an estimated 1.2 million Iraqi refugees.
-
High Food Prices and WFP ; briefing booklet
Source: WFP
Document: Article
Date: June 12, 2008
Access: Open
High food prices are having serious negative effects on vulnerable households living in low-income and crisisprone countries. The impact on the nutritional and health status of populations may jeopardize the prospects for
the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals. Higher food prices have not only set back progress
towards the reduction of poverty and hunger (MDG1), but will also make it more difficult to achieve the targets
for education (MDG2), child and maternal mortality reduction (MDGs 4 and 5) and the spread of major diseases
(MDG6). The World Bank estimates that high food prices risk might push an additional 100 million people into
poverty.
Human Rights and Protection
-
Gender Task Force
Source: UNIFEM
Document: Article
Date: July 21, 2008
Access: Open
All identified gender focal points in all agencies and NGOs are invited to attend the Gender Task Force meeting
th
on Thursday July 31 2008, at 11:00 at UNIFEM. The main issues on the agenda will be the GFP ToRs and the
mapping exercise. Please send me if you need to add anything.
NCCI Weekly Highlight
Issue 121 – 07/31/2008
7
-
“Prisoner Boxes” in Iraq
Source: Uruknet
Document: Article
Date: July 24, 2008
Access: Open
In Iraq, some prisoners/detainees are kept in wooden crates known as "prisoner boxes," so I filed a Freedom of
Information Act request with the US Central Command asking for the following: "Vanity Fair (Feb 2005 issue)
has reported the existence of wood "prisoner boxes" being used by the US military in facilities in and around
Baghdad. They are used to hold individual prisoners and detainees. "I hereby request all photographs of these
boxes, including empty boxes as well as boxes holding prisoners and detainees." Around nine and a half
months later, CentCom responded by sending the three photographs on this page.
-
IRAQ: Move to prevent children being exploited by militants
Source: IRIN
Document: Article
Date: July 29, 2008
Access: Open
Iraqi government institutions, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and international bodies must focus more
on devising programmes for juveniles to prevent them from being co-opted by militants for criminal acts, a
government spokesman said on 28 July. “We have evidence that the phenomenon of criminal gangs and
terrorist groups recruiting juveniles - either by threatening them or luring them with money - has increased
recently,” said Hamza Kamil, spokesman of the Iraqi Human Rights Ministry.
Health
-
WHO in Iraq: Bi-Weekly Bulletin - Week ending 20 Jul 2008
Source: UNWHO
Document: Report
Date: July 20, 2008
Access: Open
Iraq will have greater capacity to respond to humanitarian crises and to support the reform of Iraqi health-care
system with the return, after five years, of permanently-based international WHO staff to the country. Foreign
WHO staff based in Iraq were withdrawn after the August 2003 terrorist attack on the UN headquarters in
Baghdad. But the recently improved security situation in the country, plus the UN support of Iraq's International
Compact initiative, led WHO to re-establish its permanent international presence last month. "WHO is here to
serve Iraq," said WHO Country Representative Dr Naeema Al- Gasseer.
-
Helping Doctors to Help Iraqis with Mental Health Problems
Source: IMC
Document: Report
Date: July 29, 2008
Access: Open
For weeks Sadir has felt unwell. Pale-faced and short of breath, she coughs frequently. Her sister, Afra, does
most of the talking and explains that the medication for hypertension is making Sadir sick. Asking Sadir
questions about her life while examining her, Dr. Wesam Awamla realizes that his patient’s complaints are more
likely caused by living circumstances than by high blood pressure. As a student many years ago, Dr. Wesam, a
general practitioner, had a few weeks training in psychology and psychiatry. But these days he routinely
encounters patients like Sadir: Iraqis living in Jordan whose physical symptoms are caused by mental health
problems.
IDPs
-
IOM Mid Year Review
Source: IOM
Document: Article (Arabic langugage)
Date: July 29, 2008
Access: Open
IOM Mid Year Review and Governorate profile.
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-
Najaf authorities to weed out bogus IDPs, official says
Source: IRIN
Document: Article
Date: July 27, 2008
Access: Open
A provincial investigative committee in the southern Iraqi city of Najaf is to go check the files of more than 200
displaced families living in a camp outside the city to determine who are genuinely displaced and who are not,
an official said on 26 July. Mashkour al-Mousawi, director of the Ministry of Displacement and Migration’s Najaf
province branch, added that the committee will expel from the camp those families claiming to be displaced and
will encourage the return of some genuine internally displaced persons (IDPs) to areas now deemed safer for
them to return to.
Refugees
-
Appeal to European Member States to resettle the Palestinians from
Iraq - Syria Border
Source: IRC
Document: Letter
Date: July 22, 2008
Access: Open
We have read with interest the Conclusions on resettlement of Iraqi refugees in the Member States of the EU
adopted by the Justice and Home Affairs Council on 24-25 July 2008. We very much welcome the EU level of
acknowledgement of the need for increased resettlement of these refugees. However, we would like to draw
your attention to the particular situation of a group of Palestinian refugees stranded in extremely difficult and
dangerous conditions in camps on the borders of Syria and Iraq. We would like to encourage each Member
State to commit to resettling three Palestinian families in order to respond to this humanitarian crisis.
-
National Policy Documents & POT Meeting Agenda
Source: UNHCR
Document: Documents
Date: July 21, 2008
Access: Open
The displacement of Iraqis is one of the key challenges faced by the Government of Iraq and international
community. Displacement in Iraq has reached an alarming level which has attracted the attention of all
Government, non-governmental and international agencies trying to find appropriate solutions and strategies to
reverse the situation and swiftly address the issues. In the years before and after the fall of the former regime,
Iraq witnessed a wide variety of forced displacement.
-
EU drops calls to take in more Iraqi refugees
Source: Alternet
Document: Article
Date: July 24, 2008
Access: Open
European Union interior ministers dropped calls for the bloc to take in more Iraqi refugees after Iraq's prime
minister said his government was trying to convince refugees to return home to help Iraq rebuild. The U.N.
Refugee Agency (UNHCR) estimates 2 million Iraqi refugees are living abroad, mostly in neighbouring Jordan
and Syria. More than 2.5 million are internally displaced. The UNHCR has long lobbied the EU to take in more
Iraqi refugees. German Interior Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble had urged European countries in April to do more
to provide shelter to Christians among the refugees who have fled to Iraq's neighbours to avoid ethnic strife after
the 2003 war. But Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, on a visit to Berlin earlier this week, urged Germany to
abandon this initiative, Schaeuble told reporters.
-
For Iraqi refugee women, learning to laugh again
Source: UNHCR
Document: Article
Date: June 30, 2008
Access: Open
Abeer smiles for the first time in years, hiding the scars of war that have plagued her life for years. A former
head of the library at the University of Baghdad, she was forced to flee to Syria after her life was threatened in
NCCI Weekly Highlight
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9
2006. Like many refugees in Syria, Abeer now lives an on-going life of insecurity. Today, however, Abeer is
experiencing new hope. With the aim of empowering refugee women, the United Nations Refugee Agency has
launched a pilot project with the international organization Clowns Without Borders seeking to improve the selfconfidence, relaxation techniques and communication skills of some of the neediest women. And in a few short
weeks, the results are already being noticed.
-
Nouri Maliki asks pope to urge Christians to return to Iraq
Source: Los Angeles Times
Document: Article
Date: July 26, 2008
Access: Open
Prime Minister Nouri Maliki asked Pope Benedict XVI in a meeting Friday in Italy to encourage Iraqi Christians
who have fled their country to return, citing the improved security situation. He also invited the pontiff to visit
Iraq. "I . . . appealed to his holiness to encourage Christians who left the country to go back and be part of the
social structure of Iraq again," Maliki told reporters after his session with the pope at the pontiff's summer
residence in Castel Gandolfo.
_______________________________-----__
Iraq Context
General Overview
-
Iraq Crisis Report (IraqHAR)
Source: Centre of Excellence on Disaster Management and Humanitarian Assistance
Document: Weekly report
Date: July 31, 2008
Access: Open
Political: According to the US embassy, thousands of Iraqis who fear being killed because they worked for the
American government or military in Iraq will be awarded visas granting them permanent stay in the US. In
addition, the embassy said on Thursday (July-24) that a new visa scheme would allow 5,000 Iraqis in each year
during a five-year period. Since the 2003 invasion the US government and military have employed thousands of
Iraqis and many have been killed or faced death from insurgents that see them as collaborators. Richard
Albright, the US embassy’s senior coordinator for refugee issues, said Iraqis that worked for the US for longer
than three months since 2003 would be eligible for the visas. (Reuters, July-24.)
-
Juan Cole’s informed comment’s excerpt
Source: Informed Comment – Juan Cole’s Web Blog.
Document: Selection of daily comments
Date: July 24 - 31, 2008
Access: Open
Juan Cole is a Professor of Modern Middle East and South Asian History at the University of Michigan. As such
he brings daily much needed expertise and historical perspective to issues surrounding Iraq, Afghanistan and
the Middle East. Good reading to have a weekly review of the Iraq daily situation.
Iraqi living Condition
-
Relative Stability Brings Opportunities for Foreign Investors
Source: Spiegel
Document: Article
Date: July 22, 2008
Access: Open
At nine o'clock in the morning, things are already starting to bustle at the Rashid Hotel on the edge of the Green
Zone. In the lobby, Iraqi parliamentarians, Western businessmen and special envoys from the Gulf states are
busy trying to land business deals. "A year ago you could have run a bowling alley here and no one would have
bothered you all day long," says United States Ambassador Charles Ries, coordinator for economic transition in
Iraq, "but now the budgets of the ministries are overflowing." Of the $25 billion (€16 Billion) in funds earmarked
for reconstruction in 2008, Ries estimates that the country will barely be able to spend $9 billion.
NCCI Weekly Highlight
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-
Water crisis in Iraq brigs failed crops, sandstorms and schoreched
earth
Source: Timesonline
Document: Article
Date: July 29, 2008
Access: Open
Iraq is in the grip of a water crisis after this year's seasonal rains failed, wiping out crops in some parts of the
country and causing an unusually high number of sandstorms because the land is so dry. Dams and reservoirs
in neighbouring Turkey and Syria have made the problem worse. The level of water in the Tigris and the
Euphrates, the rivers that flow from the two countries into Iraq, has fallen by more than 60 per cent over the past
20 years.
Violence and (Un-) security
-
Bombers kill 50 in Iraq, wound nearly 250
Source: Alternet
Document: Article
Date: July 28, 2008
Access: Open
Three female suicide bombers killed 28 people and wounded 92 in Baghdad on Monday as Shi'ite pilgrims
flooded into the Iraqi capital for a major religious event, police said. In the northern oil city of Kirkuk a bomb
killed at least 22 people and wounded 150 at a protest against a controversial provincial elections law, Iraqi
health and security officials said. The U.S. military said initial reports showed the attack was carried out by a
suicide bomber. The blasts marked one of the bloodiest days in months and underscored the fragility of recent
security gains in Iraq, where violence is at its lowest level since early 2004.
- Female bombers kill scores of Iraqi pilgrims
Source: Independent
Document: Article
Date: July 29, 2008
Access: Open
Four female bombers have detonated explosives in the middle of crowds in Baghdad and Kirkuk, killing at least
57 people and wounding 300 in a double attack apparently geared towards stoking increased sectarian and
ethnic divisions. Three of the suicide bombers blew themselves up among Shia pilgrims as they took part in a
religious procession in Karada district in east Baghdad, killing 32 people and wounding 102. Most of the dead
were women and children. "I heard women and children crying and shouting and I saw the dead bodies of
women in pools of blood on the street," said Mustapha Abdullah, a 32-year-old man who was injured in the
stomach and legs.
-
Tight security in Baghdad for Shi'ite pilgrimage
Source: Alternet
Document: Article
Date: July 29, 2008
Access: Open
Hundreds of thousands of Iraqi Shi'ites converged on a Muslim shrine in Baghdad for the climax of a major
pilgrimage on Tuesday, a day after three female suicide bombers killed 35 people among crowds of pilgrims.
Authorities imposed a vehicle curfew in the city for the commemoration of the death of Imam al-Kadham, one of
Shi'ite Islam's 12 imams. Many pilgrims appeared undeterred by Monday's attacks, which bore the hallmarks of
Sunni Islamist al Qaeda. "The situation is fine today. Thanks be to God, security is very good," Issam Jassim
said as he walked to the Kadhamiya shrine in northern Baghdad. Shi'ite pilgrims normally make their way to
such events in Iraq on foot.
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-
Love, blackmail and rape – how al-qaeda grooms women as ‘perfect
weapons”
Source: Timesonline
Document: Article
Date: July 30, 2008
Access: Open
A woman pretending to be pregnant walks up to a hospital in one of Iraq’s most dangerous regions and blows
herself up. Minutes later a man, also laden with explosives, attacks the rescue workers who rushed to the scene
in Diyala province, north of Baghdad. Thirty-two people are killed and 52 wounded. The co-ordinated bombings
that ripped through the town of Baladruz in May are one of twelve attacks involving thirteen women suicide
bombers to strike Diyala so far this year – a huge jump, signalling a new tactic by insurgents. US officials
suspect that al-Qaeda has built a network of cells that recruit women and turn them into killers.
-
Violence In Iraq Takes On New Face
Source: CBS
Document: Article
Date: July 31, 2008
Access: Open
In Iraq's volatile mix of race, religion and tribal rivalry, police say there's a common denominator in the
continuing violence - gender. According to the U.S. military in Iraq, women have carried the bombs in at least 27
attacks so far this year - more than triple the number of female suicide bombers in all of 2007, reports CBS
News correspondent Richard Roth. A joint assessment by the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security
obtained by CBS News says the statistics reflect a growing combat role for females, aided by the fact that
bombs are easy to hide under traditional women's clothing.
Reconstruction
-
Iraq's rebuilding planned at nearly $120 billion
Source: AP
Document: Article
Date: July 30, 2008
Access: Open
"They don't need more money," said Stuart Bowen, special inspector general for Iraq reconstruction. "But they
are having a difficult time, apparently, spending the money that they have." Bowen Wednesday is releasing his
quarterly report to Congress on efforts to rebuild Iraq's shattered nation — a program now expected to spend
$117.79 billion. Aided by money from a postwar record in oil production, Baghdad itself is now set to spend an
amount almost equal to the U.S. share, the report says. That is, as of the end of the quarter on June 30 the U.S.
has appropriated $50.46 billion.
Iraqi Political process
-
Impasse over Kirkuk
Source: Niqash
Document: Article (English and Arabic)
Date: July 18, 2008
Access: Open
The Kirkuk impasse is the biggest single issue hindering political parties and parliament from concluding a
provincial council election law. Today Kirkuk remains the most politically tense region in all of Iraq. Kurds
demand the implementation of article 140 of the Iraqi constitution providing for the return of Saddam-era
deportees from Kirkuk. They are also calling on Arabs who came to the city during the Saddam-era to return to
their original areas, for a population census, and thereafter a referendum on the future status of the city,
regarding its annexation to the Kurdish region – a move which is rejected by both Arabs and Turkmen.
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Muqtada, the Future of Iraq
Source: Alternet
Document: Article
Date: July 29, 2008
Access: Open
"Firebrand." It was the ubiquitous moniker used to describe Iraq's fiercely anti-American Shiite cleric Muqtada alSadr when, in March 2004, his leering portrait became commonplace among American media reports of Iraq.
American Viceroy L. Paul Bremer III had just shut down al-Sadr's Baghdad newspaper, al-Hawza, and hinted at
arresting him, ushering in the first of several confrontations with al-Sadr and his Mehdi Army. More recently, this
label has given way to that of "Iranian-backed" -- conjuring comparisons to Lebanon's Hezbollah and Palestine's
besieged Hamas party.
Rule of Law
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What role for the interior ministry?
Source: Niqash
Document: Article (English and Arabic)
Date: July 23, 2008
Access: Open
Cases of corruption revealed some days ago by the Iraqi Red Crescent have revived a series of significant
accusations against the Iraqi Interior Ministry. Local Iraqi newspapers, most prominently al-Sabah, last week
published news on the involvement of Interior Ministry officials in providing cover for 'Adnan al-Kathimi, Deputy
Chief of the Red Crescent, to escape charges of financial and administrative corruption. According to the reports
the Interior Ministry helped al-Kathimi escape the arrest operation following the issue of an arrest warrant. AlKathimi later surrendered himself to the police.
Policies and Strategies
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A State governed by law and tribes
Source: Niqash
Document: Article
Date: July 24, 2008
Access: Open
Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki recently attended the “al-Sawaed” tribal conference held in Baghdad,
marking a further shift of importance given to tribal forces in the new Iraqi state. While it has been common since the fall of Saddam – for tribal leaders to meet together, these gatherings have always occurred in the
broader context of supporting government security plans or mobilizing support for political leaders. On this
occasion however, the conference was a purely internal affair as tribal leaders sought to unify their positions and
resolve other internal tribal issues. The conference had nothing to do with security plans or government related
issues.
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A Shiite militia in Baghdad Sees Its Power Wane
Source: New York Times
Document: Article
Date: July 27, 2008
Access: Open
It is a remarkable change from years past, when the militia, led by the anti-American cleric Moktada al-Sadr,
controlled a broad swath of Baghdad, including local governments and police forces. But its use of extortion and
violence began alienating much of the Shiite population to the point that many quietly supported American
military sweeps against the group. Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki struck another blow this spring, when he
led a military operation against it in Baghdad and in several southern cities. The shift, if it holds, would solidify a
transfer of power from Mr. Sadr, who had lorded his once broad political support over the government, to Mr.
Maliki, who is increasingly seen as a true national leader.
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Iraq begins crackdown in restive Diyala province
Source: Alternet
Document: Article
Date: July 11, 2008
Access: Open
Thousands of Iraqi soldiers and police launched a major security operation in northeastern Diyala province on
Tuesday in the latest move by the government to stamp its authority over militants. Sunni Islamist al Qaeda has
sought to stoke tensions in religiously and ethnically mixed Diyala, where a series of bomb attacks have killed
scores of people in recent months. Defence Ministry spokesman Major-General Mohammed al-Askari said the
operation commenced with raids in the local capital Baquba, 65 km (40 miles) northeast of Baghdad.
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Iraqis’ hunt for insurgents in Diyala unearths only ghosts towns and
drought
Source: Timesonline
Document: Article
Date: July 29, 2008
Access: Open
A wild dog was the first sign of life as Iraqi soldiers, supported by US troops, ventured into a village northeast of
Baghdad. Rifles raised, the group approached a courtyard of two mud-walled houses and a couple of huts,
fearing that they could be rigged with explosives. Instead, the buildings stand empty, all inhabitants and their
belongings gone. Further searches throughout the rest of Fatamia reveal that only three or four families
remained. Six months ago there were 30 to 40 families. This eerie scene has been played out repeatedly in
other villages across the southeastern corner of Diyala province, one of the country's most notorious areas.
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Iraq army flexes its muscle in Diyala province
Source: Los Angeles Times
Document: Article
Date: July 30, 2008
Access: Open
The Iraqi government's most ambitious effort yet to assert its authority over long-troubled parts of the country
began Tuesday with polite requests to search homes in and near this capital of Diyala province. It was a modest
and carefully prepared launch of a campaign that Iraqi commanders say will make use of nearly 30,000 Iraqi
troops and eventually stretch across a region east of Baghdad that is roughly the size of Maryland. The
government's previous crackdowns focused on individual cities.
Iraq and International policies
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U.S. Expands Visa Program for Iraqis
Source: New York Times
Document: Article
Date: July 25, 2008
Access: Open
Although the program was established by law in January, it has become a practical reality just in the last two to
three weeks as guidelines have been finalized and the embassy has brought in staff members and started
processing applications. The decision is the latest step in the administration’s attempt to answer sharp criticism
over its failure to help even those Iraqis who have made the American presence in Iraq possible by serving as
translators and supervisors on embassy projects, for the American military and for the Agency for International
Development. But critics in the refugee relief community noted that the State Department had promised several
times that it would try to speed up the process, and that it had not come through.
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Olympic officials bar Iraq from Beijing Games
Source: Los Angeles Times
Document: Article
Date: July 25, 2008
Access: Open
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Four years after its athletes received a huge ovation at the first Olympics after the fall of Saddam Hussein, Iraq
was told Thursday that its seven-member team would not be allowed to compete in Beijing because of a dispute
with the International Olympic Committee. Olympic officials informed Iraq that it was barring the team because
the government had dismissed the country's Olympic committee and appointed a new body chaired by its youth
and sports minister.
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Excerpt AFP news
Source: AFP
Document: Article
Date: July 24 - 31, 2008
Access: Open
Iraqi forces backed by US troops launched a major assault on Tuesday against rebels in the province of
Diyala, an Al-Qaeda stronghold and one of the most dangerous places in the country. "The operation began in
Diyala early this morning and we have begun raids in some neighbourhoods of the city of Baquba," said Ragib
al-Omeiri, chief of the operations bureau in Baquba. "Iraqi police and the Iraqi army are working together with
the US army," he told AFP.
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Deal on a Security Agreement Is Close, Iraqis Say
Source: New York Times
Document: Oped
Date: July 31, 2008
Access: Open
The agreement, under intense scrutiny in both countries, sets the terms for the presence of American troops in
Iraq. Negotiations had stalled a month ago largely over the Bush administration’s refusal to specify an intention
to withdraw troops. While the current version does not specify any exact date, officials said, President Bush’s
recent acknowledgment that withdrawal was an “aspirational goal” has revived the talks and pushed them closer
to completion. The emerging agreement, officials said, gives Iraqis much of what they want — most notably the
guarantee that there would no longer be foreign troops visible on their land — and leaves room for them to
discreetly ask for an extended American presence should security deteriorate.
____________________________________
Humanitarian world perspectives & Quality of Aid
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Quarterly Humanitarian Funding Update: Middle East, North Africa
and Central Asia region
Source: OCHA
Document: Report
Date: July 27, 2008
Access: Open
NGOs remain under – funded trough the Iraq CAP, having received just 7 %(US $ 1 million) of requested
amount. Countries in MENACA region gave over US $144 million in aid in this quarter. The main recipients of
this assistance were China and Sudan. There have also been several large humanitarian pledges, including US
$ 500 million from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to World Food Programme.
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UNDG Iraq Trust Fund (ITF) 2008 Second Quarterly Newsletter
Source: UNDG
Document: Newsleter
Date: July 27, 2008
Access: Open
Between 1 April to 30 June 2008, the UNDG Iraq Trust Fund (ITF) received contributions of AUD 5
million (equivalent US$4.7 million) from Australia, earmarked to the Agriculture and Water Resources Sector
Outcome Team. Total UNDG ITF deposits currently amount to $1,311.08 million. For further details refer to
Donor Contributions link on the UNDG ITF section of the IRFFI web site (www.irffi.org).
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This Page is your page
If you have an announcement (training, workshop, etc) regarding your organisation, if you are aware about meetings, events, humanitarian
update, if you would like to make known some information, please send them to [email protected]
Weekly Schedule
We encourage you to check regularly our Weekly Schedule on our Website for updates. We have added on our weekly
schedule some events hold in Iraq or Jordan that concern only specific invited people. They are highlighted as
“restricted”. This is to give better information on what is going on to our members.
Upcoming important dates
August-01/ Rajab-29
August-04/ SHa’baan-03
August-05/ SHa’baan-04
Augus=0t6/ SHa’baan-05
Iraq invaded Kuwait (1990)
Imam Hussein Birthday
Al-Abaas Birthday
Imam Ali Ben Hussein Al Sajad Birthday
Updates & Announcements
We would also like to introduce to you new Jordanian visa procedure for
Iraqi citizens.
The Helsinki II Agreement can be checked here.
NCCI is organizing Do No Harm workshop in Amman on 24 August, 2008.
IFES –Iraq (Baghdad) is looking for Election Liaison Officer Assistant in Baghdad
(International Zone) if interested please contact [email protected] and tel.-no. (0)
7905990288.
UPP Amman, INTERSOS and IRC Erbil are looking for new staff. Their vacancies
can be checked on the NCCI web.
NCCI’s Contact List
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