Top UN Envoy Cocerned Over Iraqi Camp Conditions
New York, Oct 26 2009 11:10AM
The top United Nations envoy to Iraq has expressed his concerns over the humanitarian situation in a camp north of Baghdad, housing thousands of Iranian dissidents.
Some 3,400 members of
the People’s Mojahedeen Organization of Iran (PMOI), also
known as Mujahedin-e Khalq, live in Camp Ashraf in Iraq’s
Diyala province.
During talks with diplomats the Iraqi
capital, Ad Melkert, the Secretary-General’s Special
Representative, confirmed the commitment of the UN
Assistance Mission in Iraq (UNAMI) to monitor the situation
in the camp on a daily basis.
Earlier this month, UN
human rights officials welcomed the Government’s decision
to release 36 members of the PMOI who had been detained
since July when security personnel used force to take
control of the camp where they had been staying.
In a
two-day operation in late July, Iraqi security personnel
took control of Camp Ashraf. Eleven people were killed and
dozens more were wounded in that operation.
In recent
years, both the mission and the UN High Commissioner for
Human Rights have been exploring how to reach a resolution
consistent with Iraq’s legitimate sovereignty and
international law.
“The UN continues to advocate
that Camp Ashraf residents be protected from forcible
deportation, expulsion or repatriation contrary to the
non-refoulement principle,” according to a UNAMI press
release issued today.
At the same time, the camp’s
leaders have also been urged to cooperate with Iraqi
authorities regarding the future of the site’s residents,
and the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and other
agencies are ready to provide the necessary legal and social
counseling.
“Efforts are now needed on all sides to
reduce tensions and look for solutions,” UNAMI stressed.
“The UN calls on the international community to provide
all possible assistance in this regard, including
resettlement to third countries of those that want to leave
the
camp.”
ENDS