Iraqi diaspora in West Asia
The Iraqi diaspora in West Asia is mostly located in Syria, Jordan, Iran and Lebanon, in addition to the well established numbers in the Persian Gulf states and Israel. As a result of the Iraq War, the Iraqi refugee crisis is the largest in West Asia in 60 years,[1] since 1948 when the State of Israel was established.
Most of the recent Iraqi immigrants fleeing to Iran and Lebanon are believed to be Shia. Religion often determines which countries the Iraqi people will apply asylum for, decades ago most of the Iraqi Jews fled to Israel through
Iraqis living in the Persian Gulf states face hardship because of the political conflicts between certain governments, especially in
Present-day Iraqi diaspora communities in West Asia
Armenia
Sources claim 460 Iraqi refugees are living in Armenia.[citation needed]
Georgia
Iran
Israel
Jordan
Jordanians expressed resentment to the newcomers, built up since the influx of refugees during and following the Persian Gulf War in 1990-1991. Then, affluent Iraqis arrived and invested in the Jordanian economy, sending prices soaring too high for many working class or lower class Jordanians. Following the 2003 war and subsequent reconstruction, the arrival of mostly poor Iraqis compounded problems, increasing demand and applying more pressure on the Jordanian economy.
The government had also been accused of cracking down on
Kuwait
The current Iraqi population in
Due to poor Iraqi-Kuwaiti relations, Kuwait had previously announced that it will not provide shelter for any Iraqi refugees and will prevent them from entering the country by guarding the border with Saudi Arabian troops. However, Kuwait did announce that they will hold any refugees in a 15 kilometer-wide demilitarized strip on the Iraqi side of the border, where it would provide humanitarian assistance.[2]
Kuwait has maintained strict regulations when considering refugees; however, the country hosted 15,000 Iraqis throughout the 1990s, most of which have resided in Kuwait. Currently, the country shelters some 13,000 Iraqis according to the UNHCR.[3]
Lebanon
Saudi Arabia
Syria
United Arab Emirates
The current population of Iraqis in the United Arab Emirates is estimated to be around 100,000.[4]
Yemen
Since the war in 2003, despite not sharing a border with Iraq,
References
- ^ Iraq War Propelling A Massive Migration
- ^ a b c "Iraqis In Kuwait". hrw.org. Retrieved 2007-09-08.
- ^ Refugees International: Countries: Kuwait Archived 2007-12-11 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "BuzzFlash > World Media Watch > 1/21/05". Archived from the original on 2011-06-06. Retrieved 2008-02-21.
- ^ "Iraqis In Yemen". hrw.org. Retrieved 2007-09-08.