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Iraq: Al Tanf fire highlights precarious condition of Palestinian refugees

Briefing Notes, 9 October 2007

This is a summary of what was said by UNHCR spokesperson Jennifer Pagonis – to whom quoted text may be attributed – at the press briefing, on 9 October 2007, at the Palais des Nations in Geneva.

We are deeply concerned about the precarious living conditions of Palestinian refugees in the Al Tanf border camp in no-man's land between Iraq and Syria after yet another devastating fire swept through the camp on Saturday injuring 25 refugees and destroying 53 tents housing 11 families. This is the third time in less than a year that the camp has suffered serious fires and yet again highlights the need for a humanitarian solution to be found for Palestinians trapped at the border after fleeing Baghdad. The 25 refugees were injured while attempting to put out the fire – three suffered first degree burns, five traumatic wounds and 17 had serious breathing problems.

An unattended fuel stove caused the fire which spread rapidly through the site, destroying tents, personal documents and all possessions of the Palestinians who have been stranded at the camp for the past 18 months. This fire has just added to an increasing atmosphere of despair and desperation at the camp.

A UNHCR team rushed tents, mattresses and kitchen supplies to the camp, organised refilling of fire extinguishers, and explored extra fire-prevention measures.

Al Tanf hosts 310 Palestinian refugees who fled sectarian violence in Iraq and have been stranded in the border area since May 2006 after they were denied entry into neighbouring countries. The majority are women and children. Another nearby border camp in the desert area, Al Waleed, hosts an estimated 1,400 Palestinian refugees, with new arrivals every week.

In a separate development in the region, UNHCR in Syria yesterday (Monday) started a mobile registration exercise in an effort to register Iraqi refugees in north-eastern Syria. The ten-member registration team is expected to register tens of thousands of Iraqi refugees throughout Syria in the coming year. The mobile registration started in Al Hassakeh Governorate where UNHCR estimates more than 6,000 Iraqi refugees may be registered over a two month period.

Until now, registration of Iraqi refugees took place only in Damascus. More than 128,000 Iraqis have registered with UNHCR in Syria, with 87,432 registered this year. The mobile registration will help give a clearer picture of the number of Iraqis in Syria, already estimated to be around 1.4 million and map out their whereabouts which is important for the delivery of assistance and protection.

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Eight years after the fall of Saddam Hussein's regime, over 1.5 million people remain displaced throughout Iraq, including 500,000 who live in dire conditions in settlements or public buildings. For these very vulnerable people, daily life is a struggle with limited access to clean water, electricity, heath services or schools for their children. Many families who live illegally in informal settlements are at risk of eviction. Most of the internally displaced fled their homes because of sectarian violence which erupted in 2006 following the bombing of the Al-Askari shrine in Samarra. UNHCR works with the Government of Iraq on projects such as land allocation; shelter assistance and house reconstruction to try to find long term solutions for the displaced.

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In February 2010, the last 60 Palestinian inhabitants of the squalid camp of Al Tanf on the Syria-Iraq border were ushered onto buses and taken to another camp in Syria.

Al Tanf camp was established in May 2006, when hundreds of Palestinians fleeing persecution in Iraq tried in vain to cross into Syria. With no country willing to accept them, they remained on a strip of desert sandwiched between a busy highway and a wall in the no-man's-land between Iraq and Syria.

Along with daily worries about their security, the residents of Al Tanf suffered from heat, dust, sandstorms, fire, flooding and even snow. The passing vehicles posed another danger. At its peak, Al Tanf hosted some 1,300 people.

UNHCR encouraged resettlement countries to open their doors to the Palestinians. Since 2008, more than 900 of them have been accepted by countries such as Belgium, Chile, Finland, Italy, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. The last group of Palestinians were transferred to Al Hol camp in Syria, where they face continuing restrictions and uncertainty.

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