“What About Fallujah Evacuees?” Iraqis Wonder

Some of the displaced resorted to their relatives in the capital Baghdad or other neighboring cities. Others, however, inhabited medical centers, uncompleted building structures, schools and mosques.

Aanah city, adjacent to the west of Fallujah, was an important destination for the displaced who sought the assistance of their relatives.

The city of50 . 000population received tens of families, some of which comprise more than 30 persons each, as big families is a sign of tribal Fallujah.

Anwar Al-Any, an inhabitant of Aanah, said that Radwan Al-Hassan's family “has hosted three families escaping the US bombardment.”

“Interim Negligence”

He further pointed out that some of the displaced were students who had to leave their schools in Fallujah and lost a complete academic year.

Thousands of the evacuees suffer a variety of serious problems, including insufficiency of medicine supplies, considering the huge numbers of displaced pouring into the city. Winter adds up to the gravity of the problem, especially that Aanah weather is very cold in, eyewitnesses told IslamOnine.net.

Iraqi sources, meanwhile, voiced their deep resentment of the Iraqi interim government’s complete ignorance of the humanitarian problems of those displaced.

Due to their huge numbers, some displaced families find no shelter and have no enough money to rent houses. Such families are forced to sleep over in schools and leave them in the early morning before the start of the school day, according to Iraqi witnesses.

Other displaced people stay at government departments, including health departments. Others take shelter in libraries.

Soaring Prices

The increasing number of displaced has pushed the prices of house rentals to a great extent.

In a telephone conversation with IslamOnline.net, Abu Said from Fallujah said that his mother asked him to find a temporary residence place out of Fallujah till the end of the current crisis. He discovered that renting a flat costs a fortune.

“We found a flat with enough rooms to the whole family but costs500 .000 Iraqi Dinars [equivalent to US $325] in addition a six-month advance rental,” he added.

Abu Said added that due to the soaring prices, “I preferred to stay at home under the US random shelling.”

Apart from the fighters, nobody stayed at Fallujah except those who could not afford leaving, preferred to stay home, particularly that they have no relatives outside their city.

Well-treated

In Baghdad, several houses received some displaced families and started to help them.

“Several houses in the neighborhood have agreed to share accommodation of displaced families of Fallujah among themselves. Our share of guests amounted to seven families comprising 50 members,” Rami, an inhabitant of Al-Khadra neighborhood in Baghdad, told IOL.

In solidarity with the displaced, Baghdad mosques started calling upon well-off Iraqis to contribute to support the stricken families of Fallujah, providing clothes, covers, food supply and money.

“We called upon the people through Al-Shahidain Mosque to help crisis-stricken people of Fallujah during this holy month (Ramadan) and managed to provide 150 families with money and foodstuffs in order to assist the needy Muslims,” Ahmed Abdel-Aziz said.

“Yet, the assistance and support of the people is not enough, as there is a need for the interference of the government to provide hundred of families that suffer very difficult humanitarian circumstances with help,” he added.

Other mosques undertook the same activities like Omar Al-Mukhtar and Khaled bin Al-Waleed. Baghdad mosques have also been places where displaced families can spend the night.

http://www.islam-online.net/English/News/2004-11/09/article04.shtml