IRAQ / FALLUJAH NEW ARRIVALS

The United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) said more than 85,000 people have fled Fallujah and the surrounding area since the Iraqi military offensive to retake the city from extremists began a month ago. UNHCR

• Categories: News & Features / News Stories / Unifeed
• Video Length: 00:03:09
• Production Date: 23 June 2016
• Asset Language: Arabic; English
• Corporate Name: UNITED NATIONS HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR REFUGEES - UNHCR
• Subject Topical: CONFLICT SITUATION; DISPLACED PERSONS; HUMANITARIAN CRISIS
• Geographic Subject: IRAQ
• MAMS Id: 1654699
• Parent Id: 1654699
• Alternate Title: unifeed160623e

Description

STORY: IRAQ / FALLUJAH NEW ARRIVALS
TRT: 3:09
SOURCE: UNHCR
RESTRICTIONS: PLEASE CREDIT UNHCR
LANGUAGE: ARABIC / ENGLISH / NATS

DATELINE: 22 JUNE 2016, KHALIDIYA, IRAQ

Shotlist

1. Various shot, camp hit by sand storm
2. Various shot, UNHCR staff building tents
3. SOUNDBITE (English) Bruno Geddo, Representative in Iraq, United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR):
“The size and speed of the outflow of civilians from Falluja has been overwhelming, 60,000 in 3 days. We are now playing catch up trying to make sure that everybody who has come out exhausted, traumatized, and in need of emergency assistance will have a tent to sleep under and core relief items to use to support life.”
4. Wide shot, displaced families by tents
5. Wide shot, tents
6. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Alyan Khalaf, Displaced Iraqi:
“We have been displaced for over a year and a half – almost two years. We have nothing. We have been eating rotten dates filled with worms. When you break them with your teeth you get worms. We have gone without bread for 15 to 20 days at a time.”
7. Med shot, Wafaa feeding her child
8. Close up, child
9. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Wafaa, Displaced Iraqi:
“We are exhausted by all the walking. I was scared for my children from all the bombing. These are my children and (they have) no one but me. They took my husband, so it’s just me. I found my aunt and came with her. It took two days to get here.”
10. Med shot, Wafaa feeding her child
11. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Wafaa, Displaced Iraqi:
“We didn’t even have medication for the children. We weren’t able to go to doctors for anything, we just stayed at home.”
12. Wide shot, displaced people walking
13. Wide shot, man sitting on folded tent
14. SOUNDBITE (English) Bruno Geddo, Representative in Iraq, United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR):
“We understand that there are still two sectors of the city which are not under the control of the Iraqi security forces and from all indication there may still be civilians trapped there. So in addition to upgrading the shelter and in addition to continuing distribution of relief items to newly arriving families, we will also prepare capacity to receive and accommodate families which maybe in their hundreds who still maybe trapped in Falluja and they may need our assistance in the fore coming days.”
15. Various shots, bulldozer
16. Various, UNHCR staff laying cinderblocks

Storyline

The United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) said more than 85,000 people have fled Fallujah and the surrounding area since the Iraqi military offensive to retake the city from extremists began a month ago. UNHCR said between 15 and 18 June alone, some 60,000 people fled and thousands more could still be planning to leave the city.

Despite the sandstorms, UNHCR is setting up tents in Khalidya camp to accommodate the new arrivals as its efforts intensified to accommodate the new influx of people. Khalidya is one of 13 camps aimed at sheltering around 19,000 people.

SOUNDBITE (English) Bruno Geddo, Representative in Iraq, United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR):
“The size and speed of the outflow of civilians from Falluja has been overwhelming, 60,000 in 3 days. We are now playing catch up trying to make sure that everybody who has come out exhausted, traumatized, and in need of emergency assistance will have a tent to sleep under and core relief items to use to support life.”

Alyan fled here with 12 of his family members. He had been displaced elsewhere for a year and a half and just arrived at this camp.

SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Alyan Khalaf, Displaced Iraqi:
“We have been displaced for over a year and a half – almost two years. We have nothing. We have been eating rotten dates filled with worms. When you break them with your teeth you get worms. We have gone without bread for 15 to 20 days at a time.”

Wafaa made the long exhausting journey from Falluja all alone with her children.

SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Wafaa, Displaced Iraqi:
“We are exhausted by all the walking. I was scared for my children from all the bombing. These are my children and (they have) no one but me. They took my husband, so it’s just me. I found my aunt and came with her. It took two days to get here.”

Wafaa described an unbearable situation for her family in Fallujah.

SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Wafaa, Displaced Iraqi:
“We didn’t even have medication for the children. We weren’t able to go to doctors for anything, we just stayed at home.”

With parts of Fallujah still undergoing heavy fighting, Bruno Geddo said aid agencies were bracing for more arrivals.

SOUNDBITE (English) Bruno Geddo, Representative in Iraq, United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR):
“We understand that there are still two sectors of the city which are not under the control of the Iraqi security forces and from all indication there may still be civilians trapped there. So in addition to upgrading the shelter and in addition to continuing distribution of relief items to newly arriving families, we will also prepare capacity to receive and accommodate families which maybe in their hundreds who still maybe trapped in Falluja and they may need our assistance in the fore coming days.”

More than 3.3 million people are internally displaced in Iraq who have fled their homes since January 2014. This is in addition to a million more people still displaced since the sectarian conflicts of the mid-2000s.