Iraq needs $1.56 billion for humanitarian response to ISIS in 2016

Iraq needs $1.56 billion this year to finance its emergency response to the humanitarian crisis caused by the war against Islamic State, according to a government report released on Sunday.

Baghdad, strapped for cash amid a plunge in oil prices and higher military expenditure associated with the fight against the Sunni jihadist group, will manage to fund less than 43 percent of those needs from its budget, the report said.

"The international community is necessary for bridging the deficit or financing gap," it added.

The conflict has displaced more than 3.3 million people since 2014. The Iraqi government allocated around $850 million last year for efforts to shelter such families and help them return to recaptured areas, but it ended up funding less than 60 percent of that, the report showed.

Islamic State seized about a third of Iraq's territory in the north and west in 2014, but has slowly been pushed back by Iraqi forces, Iranian-backed Shi'ite militias and Kurdish peshmerga fighters - backed by US-led coalition air strikes.

Most of the displaced people, living in makeshift camps, disused buildings and homes in Baghdad, the northern Kurdistan region and other areas, are from Iraq's Sunni minority.

related articles
Bishops' Middle East tour highlights plight of Iraqi refugees

Bishops on a solidarity tour of the Middle East will highlight the suffering of Iraqi Christians today as they travel the region to raise awareness of "forgotten Christians".

Open Doors: Syria and Iraq are 'the tip of the iceberg' – there has never been a worse time to be a Christian

There has never been a worse time to be a Christian, according to persecution charity Open Doors who will launch their annual report this afternoon.

Islamic State bulldozes oldest monastery in Iraq
Islamic State bulldozes oldest monastery in Iraq

Islamic State has destroyed a monastery in Iraq that was the oldest in the country and one of the oldest in the world.

120,000 people are starving in Syrian city besieged by ISIS
120,000 people are starving in Syrian city besieged by ISIS

At least 120,000 people are starving in the Syrian city of Deir al-Zor, a senior Church leader has warned, as ISIS continues to lay siege on the town.

Syrian opposition to go to Geneva as peace talks open
Syrian opposition to go to Geneva as peace talks open

Syria's main opposition group agreed to travel to Geneva, where the United Nations on Friday opened peace talks to end the country's five-year-old war.

News
Campaign aims to mobilise 500,000 Christians for Christmas outreach
Campaign aims to mobilise 500,000 Christians for Christmas outreach

Shine Your Light is aiming to mobilise half a million Christians to share the gospel with five million people across the UK this Christmas, with more than 2,000 churches already signed up, organisers say.

The Church of England should repent for previous calls to ban 'conversion therapy'
The Church of England should repent for previous calls to ban 'conversion therapy'

The Church of England's uneasiness about the government's ‘conversion practices’ bill is a perfect lesson in the old adage, 'be careful what you wish for,' writes Dr Martin Davie.

Leaked Home Office report links 'Christian extremism' to traditionalist beliefs and immigration concerns
Leaked Home Office report links 'Christian extremism' to traditionalist beliefs and immigration concerns

An internal Home Office report lists concerns about immigration, multiculturalism and changing social values among the characteristics associated with what it calls "Christian extremism", it has been reported.

Tearfund calls for COP31 funding to reach farmers struggling with climate change and food insecurity
Tearfund calls for COP31 funding to reach farmers struggling with climate change and food insecurity

Tearfund warns that worsening climate conditions are threatening food production and pushing more people towards hunger.