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During April 2017 (reporting period), the Iraq Internally Displaced Persons Information Centre (Iraq IIC) handled 5,563 calls, pushing the total number of calls handled passed 74,000. In April, callers identified cash and food as priority needs, with each accounting for 25% of total calls. Requests for information on Government services made up 14% of calls, with calls related to health accounting for 8% of calls.

During this reporting period, 31% of cash callers said shelter/NFIs was their primary need, with the majority of such calls made from camps in Ninewa (27%), where kerosene for cooking, mattresses and blankets were cited as main needs. Calls requesting cash for health needs accounted for 29% of cash calls, with Ninewa (20%), Sulaymaniyah (16%), Diyala (6%), and Salah al-Din (6%) ranking as top call locations for cash-for-health requests. Six percent of cash callers requested cash to cover food, health, and shelter related debt. In April, 34% of calls from Diyala requested cash assistance, with food and shelter being cited as primary needs.

For 41% of food callers, information on how to register for food assistance was a priority need, with 26% of such callers being women calling from Erbil (29%) and Ninewa (28%). Thirty-seven percent of food callers asked why their names had been removed from food distribution lists. Of the 6% of food callers that said food vouchers are not enough to cover needs, 68% called from Ninewa (of which more than two-thirds were from camps) and 20% called from Anbar. Some callers from camps in Ninewa said they are selling food assistance to pay for food items such as fresh vegetables and alternative types of pulses. Twenty percent of calls relating to Government services requested information on Ministry of Displacement and Migration (MoDM) cash grants to cover food needs.

In line with trends over the past 12 months, calls relating to Government services ranked in the top three caller requests, accounting for 14% of all calls in April. During April, 78% of Government services calls were requests for information on MoDM cash grants, with 41% of those callers requesting shelter/NFIs. The majority of these calls were made from camps: 71% were made from Qayarrah Al-Jadah while the majority of the MoDM cash grant calls form out-of-camp locations were from Ninewa (30%) and Salah al-Din (21%). Requests for restitution for damaged assets, which accounted for 10% of total Government services calls, were largely from people who originate from Ninewa (67%), Anbar (14%), and Salah al-Din (12%).

Nine percent of total calls in April, were related to the Protection Cluster; of these calls, 56% came from out-of-camp locations and 63% of calls from camps were requests for legal assistance to help replace lost documentation, register births, deaths, and marriages, update their PDS cards, and find detained family members and friends. Ninewa was the top caller location for legal assistance, with 25% of legal calls being made from out-of-camp locations and 75% of legal calls being made from camp locations in Ninewa.

For 8% of Iraq IIC callers in April shelter/NFIs was a primary need, with 85% of these calls coming from camps. Of those camp-based callers, 67% of calls were made from camps in Ninewa, in particular Qayarrah Airstrip and Qayarrah Jadah. Callers largely sought NFI support in the form of kerosene for cooking, mattresses, blankets and as the end of the month drew to a close callers increasingly requested summerisation items. Calls relating to the Camp Coordination and Camp Management (CCCM) cluster made up 4% of calls in April. Feedback that camp management was not listening to IDP needs was a top complaint in Haj Ali (50%). There was an increase in reports of snakes and spiders in camps located in the Al-Hamdaniya area.

Health calls accounted for 8% of total calls during April. Of those calls, 38% were made from camp locations, with 67% of camp health calls being made from camps in Ninewa, in particular Qayarrah Airstrip and Qayarrah Jadah. These callers requested health assistance primarily for secondary and tertiary healthcare reasons. While Ninewa topped the list for out-of-camp health calls, 100% of calls requesting psychosocial support in April were made from Erbil and Dahuk.

In April 2% of total callers cited Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) as a primary need, with 85% of calls relating to water access. Of those calls, 65% were made from camps, with camps in Ninewa accounting for the lions share (87%). In out-of-camp settings, the majority of calls relating to water access came from Mosul City. Of the calls relating to poor sanitation, 86% were made from camps, in particular Qayarrah Airstrip (29%), Kirkuk Laylan (18%), Haj Ali (18%), and Ameriyat Al-Falluja (12%).

For the fourth consecutive month, Ninewa topped the list of caller locations, accounting for 46% of total calls, followed by Erbil (14%), and Dahuk (9%). For Ninewa-based callers, food was a top priority, with 28% of callers requesting food assistance, followed by cash, which accounted for 21% of total Ninewa calls. The call centre received its first calls from Al Jarabee camp in Telafar in April, with callers citing a range of needs including camp security, food, in-date medicines, water, and sanitation. For more information on calls from Ninewa, please see the Iraq IIC Ninewa Monthly Summary for April.

Of people calling from camp locations to seek information on returns, 87% were made from Ninewa and 13% from Anbar. Returnees calling from out-of-camp locations primarily called from Ninewa (79%), Anbar (10%), Salah al-Din (6%), Diyala (4%), and Baghdad (1%). Of calls made by returnees in Ninewa, 78% had returned to their area of origin in East Mosul. For returnees to East Mosul, 22% requested cash assistance, 19% information on Government services, 13% legal assistance, and 5% called about employment opportunities. Anbar returnees cited Government-related services as a priority need (42%), with people requesting information on restitution for damaged assets and Government salaries.

All Iraq IIC reports are available for download on the humanitarian community portal: humanitarianresponse.info.

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Iraq IDP Information Centre Report, April 2017 - ReliefWeb

Iraq vet says he was prohibited from returning to FDNY Academy New York Daily News Decorated Iraq combat vet Samuel Berger, who has years of experience fighting fires, has been rejected from re-entering the FDNY Academy after he had to take an emergency leave because his mother fell ill, the Daily News has learned. The FDNY and a ...

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Iraq vet says he was prohibited from returning to FDNY Academy - New York Daily News

ANKARA Turkey's military killed 13 members of the militant Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) in air strikes in northern Iraq on Sunday, the military said in a statement.

The warplanes struck seven PKK targets in the Avasin-Basyan region of northern Iraq, and killed militants believed to be preparing for an attack, the military said.

In a separate air strike in Turkey's southeastern province of Van late on Saturday, the military said warplanes had killed another 10 PKK militants.

The PKK, which has carried out a three-decade insurgency in southeast Turkey, has camps in the mountains of northern Iraq, near the Turkish border. It is considered a terrorist group by Turkey, the United States and the European Union.

(Reporting by Tuvan Gumrukcu; Editing by Susan Fenton)

MANCHESTER, England Members of Manchester suicide bomber Salman Abedi's network are still potentially at large, British interior minister Amber Rudd said on Sunday, after the terrorism threat level was lowered due to significant progress in the investigation.

BERLIN Germany, whose relations with Turkey have been strained by a series of rows, will decide within two weeks whether to withdraw troops deployed at Turkey's Incirlik air force base, a German Foreign Ministry official said on Sunday.

MILAN Former prime minister Matteo Renzi suggested on Sunday that Italy's next election be held at the same time as Germany's, saying this made sense "from a European perspective".

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Turkish military says kills 13 Kurdish militants in northern Iraq | Reuters - Reuters

Looking at the current U.S. engagement in the Middle East, one comes to an inescapable realization of the clear contrast between the strong rhetoric of the new Trump administration and the quiet echoes of the Obama administration. It is positive that the Trump administration is paying attention to the Middle East.

But President Trump's decision to visit Saudi Arabia and not Iraq has sent the wrong signals to the Iraqi side about his priorities in region. If Americas number one priority in the region is to defeat Daesh (ISIS) then his visit to Iraq should have been a priority. No country in the world has sacrificed more than Iraq in fighting and pushing back Daesh.

Even from a military perspective, Iraqi forces are by far the most experienced and capable to defeat themno other regional country can compare.

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The Iraqi security forces havent lost a battle against Daesh in two years. Any genuine international commitment to defeating the global threat of international terrorism must include a determined focus on rooting out remnants of Daesh in Iraq and Syria, while ensuring that security in Iraq is robust and lasting.

Here, the U.S., with detailed consultation with the Iraqi government, needs to make a firm decision about the extent of its future political and military engagement in Iraq. It needs to send a clear message to its Iraqi counterparts about that commitment.

As President Trump was feted in Saudi Arabia and Israel, Iraq and its challenges and sacrifices, appeared to be an afterthought. It is not just that President Trump did not make the almost customary surprise visit to the country during his trip to the region but that his message from Riyadhwhich cast violence in Iraq and the region in sectarian termsappeared to ignore the fundamental causes of Iraq's suffering, which is not Iranian expansionism but violent jihadist Salafism.

Whether consciously or not, President Trump appeared to reinforce the Saudi narrative that the region is in the midst of a sectarian struggle of good Sunnis versus evil Shia. Yet Iraq's Shiawho make up a majority of both the country's armed forces and its volunteer Popular Mobilization Forceshave fought valiantly against Daesh. No one should doubt their commitment or their loyalty to the Iraqi state they are defending.

The Iraqi government, which is led by Shia Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, has been an important ally for the United States and for Iran in fighting a war in which both countries have the same goal: dislodging and eradicating Daesh and defeating international jihadist Salafism.

Read more: U.S. lawmakers urge Trump to support 'rebuilding' in Iraq

Let us not forget here that the Saudis are not a neutral party, and neither are the Israelis. Both are engaged in a regional power struggle, along with Turkey and Iran. Washington's greatest contribution to peace would be encouraging dialogue among all parties and laying the seeds for a regional security framework that can manage the conflict, not fuel it.

U.S. President Donald Trump (C) makes his way to board Air Force One in Riyadh as he head with the First Lady to Israel on May 22, 2017. The president decided against visiting Iraq in his first trip to the region. Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty

A stable Iraq is in the interest of U.S. national security for many reasons, not least Iraq's geopolitical significance due to its location. Regional superpowers like Turkey, Iran and Saudi Arabia will continue to compete in order to assert their positions in the Middle East and establish spheres of influence and Iraq's stance in regard to these rivalries can tip the balance.

Iraq's natural resources and ongoing oil export capabilities also allow it to be an important stabilizing factor in the flow of petroleum to various international markets.

On the security cooperation side, Iraq is at the forefront of the struggle against terrorism conducted by non-state actors, in particular Daesh and the threat it continues to present to international security.

Daesh is not only a threat to the countries of the region; as the bombing in Manchester illustrated, it is a threat to the world. Iraqis are intimately familiar with the threat of violent extremism, we have suffered hundreds of Manchester-type attacks over the past 14 years, which have cost the lives of thousands, including women and children.

Another key factor that puts Iraq in a unique position, one that the West does not focus on, is the important influence of the city of Najafcurrently the preeminent Shia school of jurisprudencewithin the Shia world. As Najaf continues to compete for religious influence in the Middle East, Iraq increasingly has the ability to influence the future of Shia Muslim religious authority across the globe.

Finally let us also not forget that, demographically, Iraq is a young nation where the average age is below 20 years old. Youth empowerment is currently not receiving enough attention from the Iraqi government and international programs aimed at empowering the youth will ensure the battle of ideas against Daesh ideology will continue with the aim of a stable Iraq in which young people play a positive role.

A stable, strong Iraq is a key foundation for a stable Middle East so let us all work towards a democratic Iraq that represents all of our common interests.

If Washington seeks a long term security, economical and political partnership with Iraq, as it should, President Trump should have visited our country. Optics mean everything in the Middle East. This was a missed opportunity.

Lukman Faily was the Iraqi Ambassador to the United States between 2013 and 2016. He also served as Iraqs Ambassador to Japan from 2010 to 2013.

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Donald Trump Should Not Treat Iraq As An AfterthoughtWe Need Each Other - Newsweek

On Memorial Day, we pay respects to the fallen from past wars including the more than one million American soldiers killed in the Civil War, World Wars I and II, Korea and Vietnam.

Yet the nations longest and most expensive war is the one that is still going on. In addition to nearly 7,000 troops killed, the 16-year conflict in Iraq and Afghanistan will cost an estimated US$6 trillion due to its prolonged length, rapidly increasing veterans health care and disability costs and interest on war borrowing. On this Memorial Day, we should begin to confront the staggering cost and the challenge of paying for this war.

The enormous figure reflects not just the cost of fighting like guns, trucks and fuel but also the long-term cost of providing medical care and disability compensation for decades beyond the end of the conflict. Consider the fact that benefits for World War I veterans didnt peak until 1969. For World War II veterans, the peak came in 1986. Payments for Vietnam-era vets are still climbing.

The high rates of injuries and increased survival rates in Iraq and Afghanistan mean that over half the 2.5 million who served there suffered some degree of disability. Their health care and disability benefits alone will easily cost $1 trillion in coming decades.

But instead of facing up to these huge costs, we have charged them to the national credit card. This means that our children will be forced to pay the bill for the wars started by our generation. Unless we set aside money today, it is likely that young people now fighting in Afghanistan will be shortchanged in the future just when they most need medical care and benefits.

A forgotten war

While most Americans are keen to support our troops, we arent currently shouldering the financial or the physical burden of our nations warfare. Except for a short period between the two world wars, the percentage of the general population now serving in the U.S. armed forces is at its lowest level ever.

Whats more, the war in Afghanistan barely features on our front pages. During the past two years it has not even made it into the top 10 news stories.

There is not much pain in our pocketbooks either. In past wars, taxpayers were forced to cover some of the extra spending. During Vietnam, marginal tax rates for the top 1 percent of earners were hiked to 77 percent. President Harry Truman raised tax rates as high as 92 percent during the Korean War, telling the country that this is a contribution to our national security that every one of us should stand ready to make. In fact, taxes were raised during every American conflict since the Revolutionary War, especially for the wealthy.

This time around we have borrowed the money instead. Thanks to the Bush-era tax cuts of 2001 and 2003, nearly all Americans now pay lower taxes than before the invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq. And unlike previous wars, Congress has paid for the post 9/11 conflicts using so-called emergency and overseas contingency operations spending bills, which bypass Congress own budget caps. This has allowed the government to avoid any uncomfortable national discussion on how to balance war spending against other domestic priorities.

A bipartisan effort

We cannot simply undo the trillions of dollars that have already been added to the national debt as a result of these wars, but there is an important step we can take to commemorate those who have given their lives or their health to this 16-year-long quagmire. We owe it to them to ensure that there is sufficient money set aside to pay for the benefits we have promised to them and their families.

The solution is to set up a Veterans Trust Fund. Trust funds are an established mechanism for the federal government to fund long-term commitments. We already have more than 200 of them, including the best-known, Social Security. While trust funds do not force the government to set aside money, the federal government would be required to prepare an accounting of how much money is owed to veterans and take steps to provide funding to pay claims as they come due.

This process has already been adopted for the Military Retirement Trust Fund, which pays pensions to career service members who retire after 20 years service. Since Congress established the fund in 1984, it has been amortizing the retirement benefits that are already due and transferring an annual amount into the fund to cover them. We need to adopt a similar approach for todays all-volunteer veterans who fight multiple, lengthy tours of duty but usually leave the military before 20 years are up.

Four members of Congress, Beto ORourke, D-Texas, Seth Moulton, D-Mass., Don Young, R-Ark., and Walter Jones, R-N.C., recently introduced a bipartisan Veterans Health Care Trust Fund Act. This proposal would establish a fund for veterans benefits, paid for in part by a small income tax surcharge. Those serving in the military and their families would be exempt from paying.

Such a fund cannot solve all the problems of todays veterans. But on this Memorial Day, lets not forget to provide for the men and women who have borne the brunt of the nations longest and most expensive war.

Linda J. Bilmes, Daniel Patrick Moynihan Senior Lecturer in Public Policy and Public Finance, Harvard University

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Iraq and Afghanistan: The $6 trillion bill for America's longest war is unpaid - Salon