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Angelina Jolie visits refugee camp in Iraq

By JC Finley
Angelina Jolie addresses reporters at an informal settlement and a formal camp at Khanke, near Dohuk city, in Iraq on Jan. 25. YouTube/United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
Angelina Jolie addresses reporters at an informal settlement and a formal camp at Khanke, near Dohuk city, in Iraq on Jan. 25. YouTube/United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees

DOHUK, Iraq, Jan. 26 (UPI) -- Actress and United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Special Envoy Angelina Jolie visited Iraq to raise awareness for the 3.3 million displaced in the country.

"It is shocking to see how the humanitarian situation in Iraq has deteriorated since my last visit [in 2012]," Jolie said of her Sunday visit. "On top of large numbers of Syrian refugees, 2 million Iraqis were displaced by violence in 2014 alone. Many of these innocent people have been uprooted multiple times as they seek safety amidst shifting front lines."

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Jolie has visited Iraq five times and met with Syrian refugees in the region six times. During her latest trip, she spoke with internally displaced people in Khanke, near Dohuk city, including Yazidi women who were recently released by insurgents.

"Nothing can prepare you for the horrific stories of these survivors of kidnap, abuse and exploitation and to see how they cannot all get the urgent help they need and deserve," Jolie said.

The United Nations continues to face a funding shortfall that has impacted its aid operations. The 2014 budget was 53 percent funded and the projected funding for 2015 has only reached 31 percent.

"The needs so dramatically outstrip the resources available in this vast crisis," Jolie said. "The international community has to step up and do more."

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