.Refugees Protest Restrictions in Mideast
CAIRO, Egypt (AP) - Hundreds of thousands of Iraqis are fleeing the chaos of their homeland only to find themselves unwelcome guests in other Arab countries, threatening a major new refugee crisis in the Middle East.
Most have settled in Egypt, Jordan and Syria, and governments in those countries have begun imposing restrictions they say are needed to prevent the refugees from staying permanently.
Faced with escalating violence, kidnapping threats and sectarian death-squad killings, Iraqis are leaving at the rate of about 100,000 a month, according to a November report from the United Nations.
Experts say that this exodus could create a refugee crisis to rival that of the Palestinians.
The Palestinians fled wars with Israel in 1948 and 1967, and the number of refugees registered with the U.N. reached more than 4.3 million in 2005. About one-third live in overcrowded camps.
By contrast, about 1.8 million Iraqis have fled to nearby countries in the Middle East, most of them since the bloodshed there began after the U.S. toppled Saddam Hussein in 2003.
Arab governments in the region fear the displaced Iraqis could overwhelm public services and bring Iraq's sectarian conflicts to their soil.
Nearly 150,000 of the Iraqi refugees now live in Egypt, an increase of 50 percent since early October, according to government statistics. In 2003, there were only 800.
In recent months, the government has been making it more difficult for them to stay.
After their arrival in Egypt, Iraqis get a one-month tourist visa and then apply for a three-month, renewable residency permit. But authorities have begun refusing to grant residency status, or are turning down those who seek to renew it.
Dozens of angry Iraqis protested on Sunday at the Education Ministry after schools expelled their children because their visas were no longer valid, the Al-Gomhoria newspaper reported. The demonstrators demanded their children be allowed to take midyear exams this month.
On Monday, another group gathered at the Interior Ministry's residency department in downtown Cairo to protest "delays and procrastination" in issuing residency permits.
Many Iraqis say they have to pay bribes to get or renew their permits.
"There is a price for every stamp and every signature you get on your residency," said one Iraqi, who only agreed to be identified as Abu Wa'el for fear of reprisal.
Officials said the new restrictions would remain in place, expressing concerns that extremists might infiltrate Egypt or that ordinary Iraqis might bring sectarian rivalries with them.
The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the press.
The Interior Ministry, which handles visa and residency issues, and a spokesman at the Foreign Ministry refused to comment.
Concerned that Iraq's Shiite-Sunni split could spread to Egypt, authorities last week rejected a request by Iraqis to open a Shiite mosque in Sixth of October City, a Cairo suburb where many Iraqis live, refugees said. They spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation by Egyptian authorities.
Egypt's Muslims - who make up 90 percent of the population of 77 million - are overwhelmingly Sunni.
Last year, Jordan, which is also mainly Sunni, barred Shiite Iraqis from holding rites at a shrine outside Amman, to protests from refugees.
Jordan has all but closed the door to Iraqis and has stopped renewing residency permits for the approximately 500,000 already there.
The kingdom has also increased immigration enforcement efforts, imposing heavy fines or even deporting Iraqis caught overstaying their visas, according to the United Nations.
Syria has not restricted visas, and Iraqis have been flooding there at a rate of 2,000 a day, the U.N. says. At least 700,000 Iraqis have moved to Syria to escape the fighting, according to the Syrian government.
MyWay
Most have settled in Egypt, Jordan and Syria, and governments in those countries have begun imposing restrictions they say are needed to prevent the refugees from staying permanently.
Faced with escalating violence, kidnapping threats and sectarian death-squad killings, Iraqis are leaving at the rate of about 100,000 a month, according to a November report from the United Nations.
Experts say that this exodus could create a refugee crisis to rival that of the Palestinians.
The Palestinians fled wars with Israel in 1948 and 1967, and the number of refugees registered with the U.N. reached more than 4.3 million in 2005. About one-third live in overcrowded camps.
By contrast, about 1.8 million Iraqis have fled to nearby countries in the Middle East, most of them since the bloodshed there began after the U.S. toppled Saddam Hussein in 2003.
Arab governments in the region fear the displaced Iraqis could overwhelm public services and bring Iraq's sectarian conflicts to their soil.
Nearly 150,000 of the Iraqi refugees now live in Egypt, an increase of 50 percent since early October, according to government statistics. In 2003, there were only 800.
In recent months, the government has been making it more difficult for them to stay.
After their arrival in Egypt, Iraqis get a one-month tourist visa and then apply for a three-month, renewable residency permit. But authorities have begun refusing to grant residency status, or are turning down those who seek to renew it.
Dozens of angry Iraqis protested on Sunday at the Education Ministry after schools expelled their children because their visas were no longer valid, the Al-Gomhoria newspaper reported. The demonstrators demanded their children be allowed to take midyear exams this month.
On Monday, another group gathered at the Interior Ministry's residency department in downtown Cairo to protest "delays and procrastination" in issuing residency permits.
Many Iraqis say they have to pay bribes to get or renew their permits.
"There is a price for every stamp and every signature you get on your residency," said one Iraqi, who only agreed to be identified as Abu Wa'el for fear of reprisal.
Officials said the new restrictions would remain in place, expressing concerns that extremists might infiltrate Egypt or that ordinary Iraqis might bring sectarian rivalries with them.
The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the press.
The Interior Ministry, which handles visa and residency issues, and a spokesman at the Foreign Ministry refused to comment.
Concerned that Iraq's Shiite-Sunni split could spread to Egypt, authorities last week rejected a request by Iraqis to open a Shiite mosque in Sixth of October City, a Cairo suburb where many Iraqis live, refugees said. They spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation by Egyptian authorities.
Egypt's Muslims - who make up 90 percent of the population of 77 million - are overwhelmingly Sunni.
Last year, Jordan, which is also mainly Sunni, barred Shiite Iraqis from holding rites at a shrine outside Amman, to protests from refugees.
Jordan has all but closed the door to Iraqis and has stopped renewing residency permits for the approximately 500,000 already there.
The kingdom has also increased immigration enforcement efforts, imposing heavy fines or even deporting Iraqis caught overstaying their visas, according to the United Nations.
Syria has not restricted visas, and Iraqis have been flooding there at a rate of 2,000 a day, the U.N. says. At least 700,000 Iraqis have moved to Syria to escape the fighting, according to the Syrian government.
MyWay
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