As violence in Iraq reaches levels not seen in years, untold numbers of Iraqis are once again seeking refuge elsewhere.
With April the bloodiest month in Iraq for nearly five years, more Iraqis are seeking safety in Jordan (Reuters)
He had returned to test the waters, after having to flee in 2007 under threat to his life from having been first an outspoken critic of the US occupation of Iraq, and more recently having been critical of the regime of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.
“When you tell the truth about what is happening in Iraq, this puts you in danger,” Nazzal, a political analyst who has frequently appeared on television, told Al Jazeera. “After two of my sons were arrested in Fallujah, I left Iraq. I had no choice but to leave.”
Jordan to Host “World’s Largest Refugee Camp”
As violence in Syria continues, the al-Zaatari refugee camp in Jordan is on pace to become the largest in the world.
Jordan’s al-Zaatari refugee camp is currently home to 160,000 Syrian refugees (Dahr Jamail/Al Jazeera)
“Things are happening in Syria that our minds couldn’t even imagine,” 65-year-old Nada Salim Abdullah, who has been in the camp four months, told Al Jazeera. “People were being captured and they were slaughtering them like chickens.”
Abdullah, who fled his home in Deraa with his family, spoke of atrocities committed by forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad. Other refugees told Al Jazeera of atrocities carried out by opposition forces.
Nearly half a million Syrian refugees have crossed into Jordan since the conflict began, and according to Jordan’s interior ministry, the Zaatari camp is now the fifth largest population centre in the country.
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