Following the enforced return of a number of Iraqis to Baghdad last month, UNHCR reiterates its position on Iraqi asylum applicants. Those originating from the central governorates of Baghdad, Diyala, Ninewa and Salah-al-Din, as well as from Kirkuk province, should continue to benefit from international protection in the form of refugee status under the 1951 Refugee Convention or other forms of protection depending on the circumstances of the case. This reflects the volatile security situation and the prevailing high level of violence, security incidents, and human rights violations taking place in these parts of Iraq. UNHCR considers that serious - including indiscriminate - threats to life, physical integrity or freedom resulting from violence or events seriously disturbing public order are valid reasons for international protection.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees António Guterres told the BBC: "In Baghdad and in areas of central Iraq where we still see that the security situation doesn't allow for those returns to take place, it is recommended that people are not forced to go back against their will. If one sees the news every day one can understand why our concern is so clear."

The Refugee Agency is urging authorities to ensure that the situation in Iraq as a whole, including lawlessness, is factored into the assessments of individual cases. The continued insurgency in Iraq and on-going violence there has led to large scale internal and external displacement of the Iraqi population. Most refugees live in Syria and Jordan and there are concerns of the negative signal that forced returns from Europe could give to other host countries, particularly those neighbouring Iraq.

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