Iraq – One month into Mosul military operations, which began on 17 October, over 59,700 Iraqis are displaced from Mosul and adjacent districts as of 18 November, according to IOM’s Displacement Tracking Matrix (DTM) Emergency Tracking.

As fighting is progressing inside the city limits of Mosul, more individuals have been identified from inside the sub-district of Mosul. The majority of displaced are from Mosul district (87 percent, over 51,800 individuals), and the districts of Al-Hamdaniya (8 percent, over 4,800 individuals), Tilkaif (4 percent, over 2,600 individuals) and Telefar (less than 1 percent, 60 individuals).

The vast majority of the displaced are currently in Ninewa governorate (98 percent or over 58,400) – mostly in Al-Hamdaniya district (38,300) and in Mosul district (nearly 16,000).

The displaced population has increased by over 5,400 in the past five days. Approximately 550 families from Markaz, Mosul sub-district – where the city of Mosul is located – arrived to Khazer M1 camp in the past five days, while approximately 290 families from Baashiqa and Tilkaif sub-districts moved to Zelikan camp over the same period.

According to DTM Emergency Tracking, of those recently displaced by Mosul operations, over three quarters (78 percent; 46,300 individuals) are in formal camps; 14 percent (8,000 individuals) are in private settings (rented houses, hotels, with host families); 8 percent (4,800 individuals) are in critical shelter arrangements (informal settlements, religious buildings, schools, abandoned buildings); and less than 1 percent (300 individuals) are passing through screening sites.

The high rate of those seeking shelter in camp settings underscores the need for alternative shelter arrangements, such as full camps and emergency sites.

At IOM’s Al-Qayara Airstrip Emergency Site, 68 percent of the site work to accommodate the first phase of installing 5,000 tents is complete, and 1,400 tents are already erected. A total of 3,000 tents were on site as of 17 November. Infrastructure work is nearing completion, and planning for the next phase of site expansion, which will extend the site by an additional 5,000 tents, is underway.

The Haj Ali Emergency Site is over two thirds complete for 1,000 tents. Earthworks, fencing, road and drainage infrastructure are underway and tents provided by the Iraqi Ministry of Displacement and Migration (MoMD) are set up in the initial block.

In addition to providing shelter for displaced people, the emergency sites are employing local people to carry out construction of the camp. This is helping to engage with and build resilience among host communities, while preparing for large-scale displacements. Initiatives that create jobs continue to be a crucial area of response, as they reduce unemployment – a key reason why people might join an armed group.

“Work has progressed along an accelerated time schedule to prepare emergency sites to accommodate displaced people. Thanks to the support of the MoMD, as well as the excellent cooperation of our partners, we are confident that the sites will be ready to respond to the needs of the newly displaced,” said IOM Iraq Chief of Mission Thomas Lothar Weiss.

Additional support for the emergency sites has been provided to IOM through financial and in-kind contributions from the Office of US Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA), the European Union Humanitarian Aid and Civil Protection Department (ECHO), the UK Department for International Development (DFID) and the Governments of Germany, Canada and New Zealand.

Iraqis displaced by Mosul military operations are in addition to the over 3.1 million Iraqis currently displaced across the country since January 2014 through 10 November 2016.

Current displacement figures are available on IOM Iraq’s DTM Emergency Tracking Mosul Portal at: http://iraqdtm.iom.int/EmergencyTracking.aspx

Download latest Mosul Emergency Tracking Snapshot here.

For more information, please contact:
Joel Millman, Email: jmillman@iom.int, Tel. +41 79 103 87 20
Jennifer Sparks, Email: jsparks@iom.int, Tel. +964 750 741 1642
Sandra Black, Email: sblack@iom.int, Tel. +964 751 234 2550