Headlines 4/14/08

A selection of articles on Iraq from the past week.

Refugees fight forced return to Iraq war zones
Guardian (UK)
April 13, 2008
The United Nations last night accused the government of holding a 'sword of Damocles' over the heads of Iraqi refugees in Britain after it emerged that the Home Office had won a landmark test case giving it the power to return refugees to war-torn parts of their home country, including Basra and Baghdad.

Iraq Veterans Help New Immigrants
New York Times
April 12, 2008
Bullets whizzed past as "Sarah" translated for U.S. soldiers in Iraq. Shrapnel from a roadside blast hit her protective vest. In her off hours, she worried about retribution for helping the Americans. A sign reading "traitor" was posted on her family's door.

Iraq's National Identity Is Alive and Growing
Wall Street Journal
April 10, 2008
Those who see only serious problems within the Iraqi government and society miss the point. Iraqis are the first to admit to their shortcomings. What is important is that they are determined to overcome them. They also know it will be a long and painful process of incremental progress, punctuated by setbacks.

Iraqi Refugees Find Sweden’s Door Closing
Washington Post
April 10, 2008
"Even if they remake Iraq from gold and diamonds, I wouldn't go back," said Merzoian, 31, a computer programmer who said he arrived last year after a 10-day trip hidden in a smuggler's truck with his wife and two young children.

Syrian, Jordanian diplomats urge U.S. to share Iraqi refugee burden
Catholic News Service
April 9, 2008
"The situation is terrible and the burden" on Syria's resources and population is horrendous, said Imad Moustapha, Syrian ambassador to the U.S. The "United States is categorically refusing to help" solve the refugee crisis, "the largest exodus in the Middle East," he said.

Iraq oil production drops slightly as Baghdad criticized for spending oil proceeds
Iraq Oil Report
April 9, 2008
Iraq oil production decreased in March, along with OPEC as a whole, as Baghdad was pressed by Washington to spend more of its revenues, United Press International’s Ben Lando reports.

Iraq's Real Gains
Washington Post
April 9, 2008
Liberation offered us the opportunity to construct a new state, based on the rule of law and democratic principles. Unlike in the past, this Iraq would acknowledge and build upon its diverse ethnic and religious identities. That promise has not yet been fulfilled. Mistakes have been made, and few Iraqis doubt that political and economic reconstruction could have been handled better.

Senators Urge Bush to Appoint Official for Iraq Refugee Policy
Washington Post
April 8, 2008
Two leading Democratic senators have called for the Bush administration to appoint a senior official to coordinate overall U.S. policy for the more than 2 million refugees who have fled Iraq during the war and are now in Jordan, Syria and other Middle Eastern countries.

An advocate for Iraq's displaced Christians
Los Angeles Times
April 4, 2008
Over the last decade, DeKelaita has obtained asylum for hundreds of Iraqi Christians threatened with deportation. He travels the U.S. to counsel distraught, uprooted men and women who have fled religious persecution in Iraq.

Non-ID Palestinians in Lebanon limbo
BBC News
April 2, 2008
They are not even given the status of refugees. Legally, they don't seem to exist at all. They are among about 3,000 so-called "non-ID" Palestinians in Lebanon. Many don't qualify for aid and have been unable to leave the refugee camps, find jobs or even get married.