Displaced Iraqis turned away

BAGHDAD, April 17 (UPI) -- As violence continues to rage in Iraq, more people are fleeing their homes for safety within their country, only to be turned away.

The International Organization for Migration warned Tuesday the "displacement crisis in the country is taking on a new urgency" as half of Iraq's central and southern governorates are turning away newly displaced people from internal borders unless they prove they originated from there.

IOM chief of mission for Iraq, Rafiq Tschannen, said the continued new displacements are placing strain on host families, infrastructure and social services in these regions, yet those fleeing violence and threats, as well as the host communities, still need urgent assistance.

"If they can't get it inside Iraq, they will end up becoming refugees in neighboring countries which are already sheltering about 2 million Iraqis and are greatly stretched," the organization's official said.

An IOM statement said in some areas that are badly affected by the conflict in Iraq, there are increasing cases of young women being forced to marry into host families or to insurgents in order to allow a displaced family to stay.

Around 740,000 people have been displaced since the bombing of the Shiite al-Askari shrine in Sammara in February 2006, which sparked violent sectarian strife between Muslim Sunnis and Shiites. About 1.2 million Iraqis had been displaced before that.