Foreign refuge often eludes young Iraqi men
Four years after the US invasion, Jordan has 700,000 Iraqi refugees, but many men are routinely turned back.
from the March 20, 2007 edition
Page 2 of 3
Four years after the invasion
With nonstop violence continuing to plague Iraq as the country marks the fourth anniversary of war Tuesday, the UN says some 3.8 million Iraqis have left their homes since the US invasion.
A steady flow of refugees continues to spill over into neighboring countries. Jordan has been one of the most-sought destinations and is now housing more than 700,000 refugees, and according to some estimates, more than 1 million. Only Syria, with at least 1 million Iraqi refugees, has more.
The plight of Iraqi refugees has gradually been inching onto the world's radar screen, particularly in the US, where the number of Iraqis allowed to enter has been low. The US granted visas to 202 Iraqis last year and only 466 since the US-led invasion in 2003.
The Bush administration is studying a rapid increase in the numbers of Iraqis the US accepts, and has offered to bump up the number it accepts to 7,000 this year.
But Jordanian officials counter that this will only make the most minuscule of dents in the problem. Government spokesman Nasser Judeh said last month that the US offer is "just 1 percent" of the refugees that Jordan is housing. Nearly one-tenth of Jordan's population is now Iraqi.
Going back isn't an option
Many young Iraqis find they're running out of money and places to go.
Bashar al-Saady knows he's one of the fortunate ones. He comes from a well-to-do Baghdad family with connections in Jordan and was accepted to an MBA program here. That made it easier for him to get permission to enter the country. Most others his age, including many of his good friends, are being turned back, he says.
He also knows rejection, however. He was also accepted to study at a prestigious university in England, he says, but was turned down when he applied for the visa. A European diplomat in Amman confirmed that the number of Iraqis being given visas to Britain is small, and among young men, even smaller.
"They refused my application because I'm Iraqi," says Mr. Saady. He could get angry, he admits, by why bother? He was in an explosion the month before his family decided he should leave, and watched people die before his eyes. "After life in Baghdad, nothing is able to disappoint me. If you live in a place where you have five or 10 explosions every day, it becomes usual, and the only question is whether you survived."
He's able to stay here for the time being, he says, at least until he finishes school. After that, he doesn't know where he'll go. Like most Iraqi refugees here, as well as those in Syria, Lebanon, and Egypt, he isn't legally allowed to work. And although he fears for his family in Baghdad, going back isn't an option he'll consider.
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