U.S. offers $141M to Iraqi displaced

WASHINGTON, March 20 (UPI) -- The U.S. State Department announced Friday it had contributed more than $141 million in assistance to Iraqi citizens displaced by conflict.

The State Department said in a news release Friday that the funding goes in support of the 2009 U.N. Consolidated Appeal for Iraq. The contribution announced Friday adds to the $9 million in relief efforts already allocated by the United States in the current fiscal year.

Washington has called on other international donors to answer the U.N. appeal for $547 million in assistance for humanitarian aid in Iraq.

"These contributions show an ongoing U.S. focus on the needs of this vulnerable population, a focus that continues even as the security conditions inside Iraq improve, making returns of the displaced persons a more viable option in some areas," the statement said.

The funding comes as Germany welcomes around 2,500 Iraqi refugees displaced to Jordan and Syria.

European leaders Friday called on its member states to follow the German example and offer assistance to those displaced by the Iraq war, now entering its seventh year.