“There are 23 IDP camps in the Kurdistan Region, housing around 26,000 families, mostly from Shingal,” Ali Abbas, spokesperson for Iraq’s migration and displaced ministry, told Rudaw.
The bulk of the IDPs reside in camps in Duhok province, followed by Erbil. The last remaining IDP camp in Sulaimani province is on the verge of closure with “only a small number of IDPs” remaining, according to Abbas.
“There are thousands of IDPs who are not in the camps. This is a big issue, and the closure of the camps is laying the groundwork for ending the IDP file,” he stressed.
Baghdad has offered four million dinars to families who return to their homes by July 30 - the date the federal government will cease all aid for IDPs.
Despite the financial incentive, many families are reluctant to leave because of continuing violence in their hometowns, a lack of reconstruction following the destruction of their homes, and little in the way of basic services. Some who voluntarily left the camps have been forced to return, unable to piece together the basics.
Camps in the Kurdistan Region suffer from a lack of funds. In December, a Sulaimani migration department official told Rudaw that residents of Arbat camp were moved to Ashti camp to save money after aid was cut off.
Human rights advocates have expressed concern about Iraq’s push to close the camps and said that all returns must be voluntary.
