Seven years after the U.S. invasion, large numbers of Iraqis are still on the move with no safe areas to settle in.Population movement is currently most visible in the so-called disputed areas where Arabs, Kurds and Turkmen claim them for their own.
To substantiate claims, the ethnic groups, particularly Kurds, resort to violence, forcing members of the opposite ethnic group to flee.
In retaliation, in areas predominantly populated by Arabs, like the northern city of Mosul, the Kurds are pressured to leave.But population movements are currently most noticeable in the restive provinces of Kirkuk and Diyala, large portions of which come under disputed areas.
'Disputed areas’ is a term which the Kurds have coined in reference to land they want to officially add to their semi-independent enclave currently comprising the provinces of Dahouk, Arbil and Sulaimaniya.Kurds have deployed their armed militias in many such areas and have so far refused to allow regular government troops to take control.
The government is planning to organize a population count by the end of the year which the Kurds hope will determine that the disputed areas among them the oil-rich city of Kirkuk are predominantly Kurdish.The latest population movements which have involved 600 Arab families in Diyala Province are believed to be part of moves to increase Kurdish ethnic presence in these areas.
But the families, which have moved to the district of Jalawla, have nowhere to go and the authorities refuse to house them, saying their meager resources cannot cope.Hundreds of Kurdish families are also on the move after being forced to leave their hometowns and villages.Not all population movements are related to violence. Many families simply migrate in search of jobs and better living.
Those ending up in the border district of Ghaniqeen live in squalor conditions, according to Ali Ghazi, the representative of the Ministry of Immigration."We cannot provide services to the families fleeing to Khaniqeen, though they lead a wretched life," Ghazi said.Ghazi said more than 300 fleeing families landed in Ghaniqeen in the past three days only.
By Zeena Sami, Azzaman
To substantiate claims, the ethnic groups, particularly Kurds, resort to violence, forcing members of the opposite ethnic group to flee.
In retaliation, in areas predominantly populated by Arabs, like the northern city of Mosul, the Kurds are pressured to leave.But population movements are currently most noticeable in the restive provinces of Kirkuk and Diyala, large portions of which come under disputed areas.
'Disputed areas’ is a term which the Kurds have coined in reference to land they want to officially add to their semi-independent enclave currently comprising the provinces of Dahouk, Arbil and Sulaimaniya.Kurds have deployed their armed militias in many such areas and have so far refused to allow regular government troops to take control.
The government is planning to organize a population count by the end of the year which the Kurds hope will determine that the disputed areas among them the oil-rich city of Kirkuk are predominantly Kurdish.The latest population movements which have involved 600 Arab families in Diyala Province are believed to be part of moves to increase Kurdish ethnic presence in these areas.
But the families, which have moved to the district of Jalawla, have nowhere to go and the authorities refuse to house them, saying their meager resources cannot cope.Hundreds of Kurdish families are also on the move after being forced to leave their hometowns and villages.Not all population movements are related to violence. Many families simply migrate in search of jobs and better living.
Those ending up in the border district of Ghaniqeen live in squalor conditions, according to Ali Ghazi, the representative of the Ministry of Immigration."We cannot provide services to the families fleeing to Khaniqeen, though they lead a wretched life," Ghazi said.Ghazi said more than 300 fleeing families landed in Ghaniqeen in the past three days only.
By Zeena Sami, Azzaman
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