In Iraq, UN chief Guterres urges more support for those who have 'suffered enormously'

31 March 2017 – Highlighting the lack of resources for United Nations programmes assisting those displaced by the fighting in Iraq’s Mosul Secretary-General António Guterres urged the international community to do more to help the people who have &#8220suffered enormously and go on suffering.&#8221

&#8220This is a moment in which the Iraqi people [and] the people of Mosul need the solidarity of the international community,&#8221 Mr. Guterres told the press at the Hassan Sham camp, located about 30 kilometres east of Mosul.

&#8220Solidarity with those liberating Mosul [and] with the civilians who are suffering […] to guarantee protection of those civilians and, at the same time, solidarity with the victims and creating the conditions for reconciliation,&#8221 he added.

In his remarks, he also drew attention to the severe lack of funding for UN programmes assisting the displaced. Currently, te funding stands at eight per cent.

&#8220[This] shows how limited our resources are compared to the tragedy these people are facing,&#8221 noted the UN chief.

According to estimates, there are about 11 million people in need of humanitarian assistance in the country. Of this figure, about three million are internally displaced. In Mosul, more than 285,000 individuals have been displaced due to the military operations to retake the city from Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL/Da’esh) terrorists, including some 122,000 over the past month. Cumulatively, more than 350,000 individuals have been displaced since the operations began on 17 October 2016.

Mr. Guterres further spoke of efforts by the regional government of Kurdistan as well as by non-governmental organizations and stressed that international solidarity is vital to improve the conditions of those affected as well as to create conditions for reconciliation within the communities and at the national level once Mosul is fully liberated.

Also highlighting that terrorism is a global threat and terrorist groups are interlinked, greater support from the international community was in everyone’s interest.

&#8220Because the terrorist threats we see in Mosul are the same as the terrorist threat we see everywhere in the world,&#8221 he said.