U.S. IGNORES PLIGHT OF IRAQI REFUGEES

The BBC reports that "[t]he UN refugee agency (UNHCR) says there has been an "abject denial" around the world of the humanitarian impact of invading Iraq."

"The UN faces an enormous task in helping countries such as Jordan and Syria cope with the huge influx of Iraqi refugees, a spokesman said. He said the international community had to step in to help address their food, health and education needs. Syria says it is home to 1.2m Iraqi refugees, with up to 800,000 in Jordan. "

As for the U.S., according to NPR in a story dated February 14, 2007, the United States agreed to take in 7,000 Iraqi refugees. For 2006, the U.S. took in only 202. That is two hundred and two for all of 2006!

The critical political question is: why has the U.S. been so reluctant to accept refugees fleeing the violence in Iraq when it was the U.S. through George W. Bush that caused this humanitarian catastrophe?

Perhaps as suggested by various commentators, if the U.S. opened its doors to those millions of Iraqis who have fled Iraq for their lives, the U.S. would be openly acknowledging Bush's catastrophic mistakes in Iraq, the American failure to establish a democratic and free Iraq, and the present bloody civil war upheaval. All mistakes that Bush refuses to admit.