Agency: Millions more in aid needed for Iraqi refugees
(CNN) — Hundreds of thousands of displaced Iraqis may have to go without food or health care unless foreign aid increases, the U.N. refugee agency said Friday.
We will not be able to help hundreds of thousands of the most vulnerable Iraqi refugees and internally displaced if we do not receive funding for the remainder of 2008, said Antonio Guterres, U.N. high commissioner for refugees.
Without this support, the humanitarian crisis we have faced over the past two years may grow even larger, Guterres said.
More than 2.7 million Iraqis have been displaced inside Iraq since 2003, and more than 2 million have left the country, most fleeing to Syria and Jordan.
The UNHCR tries to help governments strained by the refugee influx by providing food and health care for refugees.
Earlier this year, the UNHCR received $134 million of $261 million in requested aid. The agency says the only way to make up the difference is to secure more money from governments or cut programs.
The UNHCR said it’s burdened by higher prices for fuel, food and rent.
The increased costs have also threatened health programs.
