The Exodus: An Account of the Iraq Refugee Crisis

While the public gaze is fixated on the reasons for and success of the Iraq war, few policy analysts, commentators, and journalists are paying attention to the largest refugee problem in the Middle East since 1948. New America Foundation Fellow Nir Rosen — internationally recognized for his groundbreaking journalism on Iraq since the beginning of the war in April of 2003 — presented his piece, titled “The Flight from Iraq,” which was the cover story in the May 13, 2007, New York Times Magazine.

The figures are startling — nearly 2 million Iraqis have fled Iraq for neighboring countries and another 1.9 million Iraqis have been internally displaced amounting to roughly 15% of the Iraqi population abandoning their homes. Meanwhile, since 2003, the United States has only allowed in 466 Iraqis. Compounding the damage to Iraq, the greater issue of concern is the destabilizing effects this will have on Iraq’s neighbors who have absorbed both the refuges and the political and economic baggage that accompany them. This all leads Rosen to contend that the spillover from the Iraq war has already transformed the Iraq War into a regional conflict.

At this New America event, Nir Rosen relayed accounts of the refugee crisis, whose effects are just beginning to be felt and gather attention, and the challenges it poses for the United States and the entire Middle East region. A discussion moderated by American Strategy Program Director Steve Clemons followed Rosen’s presentation.

Participants

• Nir Rosen
  Fellow, New America Foundation
• Steven Clemons
  Senior Fellow and Director, American Strategy Program, New America Foundation
  Publisher, www.TheWashingtonNote.com