Iraq humanitarian crisis grows despite U.S. surge

By Peter Apps

LONDON (Reuters) - Iraq's humanitarian crisis is getting worse and more Iraqis are fleeing their homes despite the recent surge of U.S. troops, aid workers say, with donors reluctant to fund support for millions of displaced.

Last week, President George W. Bush presented a relatively upbeat picture of conditions in Iraq and said forces could be cut by around 20,000 by next July. He linked the reduction to improvements on the ground particularly in Baghdad where the surge was centred and the volatile Anbar governorate.

The United Nations estimates 4.2 million Iraqis have fled fighting and other violence, roughly half of them fleeing to neighbouring countries and half remaining displaced within Iraq.

Most stay with host families and in inadequate accommodation such as schools or abandoned buildings but with increasing numbers in tented camps.

Having taken so many, Iraq's neighbours have effectively closed their borders to new arrivals, complaining they have received little funding to help them cope with the influx.

It remains one of the world's fastest-growing refugee crises, with almost twice as many of people displaced as by the conflict in Sudan's Darfur region.

"Everyday life is a nightmare for Iraqis and that is why they flee," said International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) spokeswoman Dorothea Krimitsas. "It is very difficult to say what will happen but it looks very bleak. What we see is clearly a deteriorating humanitarian situation."

In a report published on Tuesday and covering the first two weeks in September, the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) said improved security in Anbar and parts of Baghdad had resulted in a fall in the number of new families fleeing. But the overall number of displaced across Iraq continues to rise.