Iraqi IDPs resettle from Najaf camps

NAJAF, Iraq, Dec. 16 (UPI) -- Iraqi officials at a refugee camp south of the holy city of Najaf said they would offer financial assistance to displaced persons wishing to return home.

Mashkour al-Mousawi with the Najaf offices for the Ministry of Displacement and Migration said more than 1,200 internally displaced persons would get financial payment to help them relocate out of the refugee camp due to improved security situations, the U.N. humanitarian news agency IRIN reported.

"It has been decided by the Ministry of Displacement and Migration and Najaf provincial council to offer an amount of 5 million Iraqi dinars ($4,250) to each family in al-Manathira camp to help them return to their houses or find new places to live," he said.

He added that 87 families of the 213 based in the camp, located about 12 miles south of Najaf, had requested more funds than the ministry had allocated for resettlement.

Officials with the Iraqi Red Crescent Society in Najaf said the news was positive, but cautioned the effects of displacement required further assistance to remedy.

"People there need psychological and health rehabilitation," said IRCS' Dhia Zoain.

The news comes as the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees reported some 50,000 Iraqis have applied for resettlement in foreign countries, a milestone for the agency.

The United Nations estimates there are around 2 million internally displaced persons in Iraq, with another 2 million as external refugees.