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	Iraqi Humanitarian Crisis deserves more Attention by Kyung-Wha Kang Deputy UN Relief Chief (OCHA) Iraq   March 2016   Iraq: UN reports more than 400 civilians killed in February; cites ''viciousness'' of attacks. (UN News)   Acts of terrorism, violence and armed conflict in Iraq claimed the lives of 670 people, including 410 civilians, in February 2016, the United Nations political mission in that country has reported.   According to figures verified by the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI), 260 members of the Iraqi Security Forces and 410 civilians were killed, while 240 security forces personnel and 1,050 civilians were injured.   Although the overall casualty figures were down from the 849 killed and 1,450 injured in January, February was marked by the viciousness of some attacks, including suicide bombers hitting places of worship, a market and a funeral.   “This conflict continues to exact a heavy toll on the population,” said Ján Kubiš, head of UNAMI and Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Iraq.   With civilians accounting for about two-thirds of the overall death toll and most of the injuries in February, he stressed that “civilians should not pay the price in this conflict.”   The figures showed that Baghdad Governorate was the worst affected, with 277 killed and 838 injured; Diyala 40 killed and 43 injured; Ninewa 42 killed and five injured; Kirkuk 29 killed and 28 injured; Salahadin 11 killed and six injured; and Babil five killed and four injured.   Jan. 2016   A new United Nations report details the severe and extensive impact on civilians of the ongoing conflict in Iraq, with at least 18,802 civilians killed and another 36,245 wounded between January 2014 and October 2015, while another 3.2 million people have been internally displaced due to violence.   Of the total number of casualties, at least 3,855 civilians were killed and 7,056 wounded between 1 May and 31 October last year – the period covered by the report. According to the UN, the actual figures could be much higher than those documented, and about half of these deaths took place in Baghdad.   “The violence suffered by civilians in Iraq remains staggering,” the report states. “The so-called ‘Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant’ (ISIL) continues to commit systematic and widespread violence and abuses of international human rights law and humanitarian law. These acts may, in some instances, amount to war crimes, crimes against humanity, and possibly genocide.”   The report, compiled by the UN Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) and the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), is based largely on testimony obtained directly from the victims, survivors or witnesses of violations of international human rights or international humanitarian law, including interviews with internally displaced people.   “During the reporting period, ISIL killed and abducted scores of civilians, often in a targeted manner,” the report notes. “Victims include those perceived to be opposed to ISIL ideology and rule; persons affiliated with the Government, such as former Iraqi security forces (ISF), police officers, former public officials and electoral workers; professionals, such as doctors and lawyers; journalists; and tribal and religious leaders.”   The report adds that “others have been abducted or killed on the pretext of aiding or providing information to Government security forces. Many have been subjected to adjudication by ISIL self-appointed courts which, in addition to ordering the murder of countless people, have imposed grim punishments such as stoning and amputations.”   In addition, it details numerous examples of killings by ISIL in gruesome public spectacles, including by shooting, beheading, bulldozing, burning alive and throwing people off the top of buildings. There are also reports of the murder of child soldiers who fled fighting on the frontlines in Anbar. Information received and verified suggests that between 800 and 900 children in Mosul had been abducted by ISIL for religious education and military training.   “ISIL continued to subject women and children to sexual violence, particularly in the form of sexual slavery,” the report states.   It also documents alleged violations and abuses of international human rights and international humanitarian law by the Iraqi Security Forces and associated forces, including militia and tribal forces, popular mobilization units, and Peshmerga.   In a press release, the Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Iraq, Ján Kubis, said "despite their steady losses to pro government forces, the scourge of ISIL continues to kill, maim and displace Iraqi civilians in the thousands and to cause untold suffering.”   Mr. Kubis strongly reiterated his call to all parties to the conflict to ensure the protection of civilians from the effects of violence, while also calling on the international community to enhance its support to the Government of Iraq''s humanitarian, stabilization and reconstruction efforts in areas liberated from ISIL, “so that all Iraqis displaced by violence can return to their homes in safety and in dignity and that affected communities can be re-established in their places of origin.”   UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein warned that the civilian death toll may be considerably higher, and called for urgent action to rein in the impunity enjoyed by the vast majority of the perpetrators of violence.   “Even the obscene casualty figures fail to accurately reflect exactly how terribly civilians are suffering in Iraq,” he underlined.   “The figures capture those who were killed or maimed by overt violence, but countless others have died from the lack of access to basic food, water or medical care,” the High Commissioner said.   “This report lays bare the enduring suffering of civilians in Iraq and starkly illustrates what Iraqi refugees are attempting to escape when they flee to Europe and other regions. This is the horror they face in their homelands,” he added.   Mr. Zeid also appealed to the Government to undertake legislative amendments to grant Iraqi courts jurisdiction over international crimes and to become party to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.   http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=53037#.Vp8GZE-pXh5   Nov. 2015   Kyung-wha Kang, the United Nations Assistant Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs visited Baghdad and Erbil to discuss the humanitarian crisis. “The human cost of the crisis is devastating. We are extremely worried that all indicators point to a dramatically worsening situation in the months ahead,” Ms. Kang said.   “I spoke with women who had lost virtually everything. If we are to succeed in responding to their most basic needs, we need increased capacity, as well as improved access and security. Insecurity puts the whole aid operation in Iraq at risk,” said Ms. Kang.   “The economic crisis impacting the Kurdistan region and the country is terribly worrying. This is the time for the international community to step forward and provide urgent funding for lifesaving assistance. If this doesn’t happen, the impact will be terribly damaging,” Ms. Kang stressed.   “Funding is needed to keep programmes open and to help rebuild areas retaken from ISIL so that people can return voluntarily and safely to their homes,” Ms. Kang said at the end of her two-day mission.   “Iraq is one of the world’s most serious crises, in one of the world’s most volatile regions. There’s no question - the international community has to do more,” Ms. Kang said after meeting with senior officials in Baghdad and Erbil, and with frontline partners.   The United Nations estimates that 10 million people in Iraq are now in need of some form of humanitarian assistance. Close to 3.2 million people have been internally displaced since January 2014. Humanitarian response efforts in Iraq are critically underfunded.   Of the highly prioritized plan of US$498 million that was launched in June to respond to the most acute needs in the second half of 2015, less than 50 percent has been received, forcing humanitarian partners to close scores of lifesaving programmes.   http://unocha.exposure.co/portraits-of-iraqi-displacement http://www.unocha.org/top-stories/all-stories/iraq-we-are-faced-grim-funding-reality http://www.unocha.org/top-stories/all-stories/iraq-fending-disaster http://www.unocha.org/iraq http://reliefweb.int/country/irq http://www.ifrc.org/news-and-media/news-stories/middle-east-and-north-africa/iraq/
	Amidst rising extremism, women’s role in peace and recovery remains hampered and underutilized by UN Women   October 2015   In an unprecedented move, the United Nations Security Council will conduct an all-day Open Debate in commemoration of resolution 1325 on women, peace and security.   The historic review is timely, coming at a moment when the world is grappling with rising violent extremism that places the subordination of women at the centre of the ideology and war tactics, and violence and conflict are costing the planet over USD 14 trillion.   In direct contrast, striking new research shows that peace endures when women can participate meaningfully in peace talks, and States are more resilient in the face of conflict and extremism when gender equality is prioritized.   The UN Security Council’s High-level Review on the women, peace and security agenda will commemorate the 15th anniversary of UN Security Council resolution 1325 which recognized for the first time in 2000, the role of gender equality and women’s leadership in international peace and security.   This is the third major review conducted by the United Nations this year on international peace and security, complementing the reviews of peace operations and the peacebuilding architecture, and comes only weeks after an unprecedented gathering of world leaders at the 70th session of the UN General Assembly committed to gender equality as central to the new global development roadmap.   In 2014, 88 per cent of all peace processes with UN engagement included regular consultations with women, a significant rise from 50 per cent in 2011. Prior to the adoption of Security Council resolution 1325, 11 per cent of peace agreements made a reference to women or gender. Since then, this percentage has increased to 27 per cent. Yet, this shows that almost three-quarters of peace agreements over the last 15 years made no mention of women.   “The evidence shows us unequivocally that women need to be full participants at the peace tables, as negotiators and decision-makers in a much more inclusive process.   Women have to be able to control where resources are needed, for example to overcome trauma and the scars of war, or directing practical recovery matters like restitution of property and fields,” said Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, UN Under-Secretary-General and Executive Director of UN Women.   “UN Women is calling for accelerated action to achieve women’s leadership in peace and security with stronger political direction, greatly enhanced financial support and well-targeted spending. This anniversary must mark that threshold moment where words become action.”   She stressed: “We must not miss the chance to achieve radical change – moving from treating women’s issues as side issues or peripheral to the business of the UN, to making women and girls the missing answer to creating a peaceful and just world. Every day that women are excluded is a day longer to wait for peace. ”   Coinciding with the review is the launch of Preventing Conflict, Transforming Justice, Securing the Peace: A Global Study on the Implementation of Security Council resolution 1325, a major new report commissioned by the UN Secretary-General in preparation for the 15th anniversary review. The report brings together research which unquestionably demonstrates that women’s empowerment and gender equality contribute to the conclusion of peace talks and sustainable peace, accelerating economic recovery, strengthening protection efforts of peace operations and humanitarian assistance, and countering violent extremism.   Yet under-investment in gender equality continues, with only 2 per cent of aid to peace and security in fragile States in 2012-2013 targeting gender equality as a principal objective, and only 3 per cent of the military personnel in UN missions being women. The target adopted by the UN Secretary-General five years ago to earmark 15 per cent of all peacebuilding funds to advancing gender equality and the empowerment of women remains unmet by UN entities. This year, the Secretary-General extended this target to emerging areas of peace and security threats, including countering violent extremism.   The new Global study was led by independent lead author Radhika Coomaraswamy, former Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Children and Armed Conflict and Special Rapporteur on Violence against Women, supported by a high-level advisory group of eminent experts, and managed by a Secretariat hosted by UN Women.   Over the last 15 years since resolution 1325 was adopted, the percentage of women in peace talks has stagnated in single digits, with national dialogues and decisions in conflict-affected countries routinely dominated by a small group of male leaders.   Direct consequences are felt on women’s lives: over half of the world’s maternal deaths occur in conflict-affected and fragile States; approximately half of out-of-school children of primary school age live in conflict-affected areas; and girls’ net enrolment rate in primary education is 17 points below the global rate. In conflict-affected settings, the risk of sexual violence, child marriage and HIV infection all increase. In contrast, findings in the Global Study highlight that when women are at the peace tables, their participation increases the probability of a peace agreement lasting at least two years by 20 per cent, and 35 per cent over 15 years.   Furthermore, evidence reflected in the study also shows that States that have higher levels of gender equality are less likely to resort to the use of force in relation to engagement with other States – making gender equality a powerful tool of conflict prevention.   * Fifteen years ago, in 2000, the Security Council adopted the ground-breaking resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security, the first resolution to link women’s experiences of conflict to international peace and security.   In October 2015 in New York, the Security Council will convene a High-level Review to assess 15 years of progress at the global, regional and national levels. To inform this discussion, the Secretary-General commissioned a Global Study — led by independent lead author Radhika Coomaraswamy on the implementation of resolution 1325 and recommendations on the way forward for women, peace and security.   http://wps.unwomen.org/en http://wps.unwomen.org/en/highlights Visit the related web page
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