Al-Sulaymaniyah celebrates World Refugee Day with Cultural Festival

Shafaq News/ On Tuesday, Al-Sulaymaniyah celebrated World Refugee Day with a cultural festival themed "A Welcoming Year for Refugees," attended by prominent officials.

Binay Kamran, UNHCR's field officer, spoke with Shafaq News, stating, "in collaboration with various organizations and alongside Al-Sulaymaniyah Governor Haval Abu Bakr, department heads, and political representatives, we organized this festival to honor World Refugee Day."

She added, "The festival included various performances by male and female refugees, speeches by government officials, as well as folk songs and dances."

Kamran highlighted that "every aspect of the festival aimed to underscore that refugees are integral members of the community, no different from others. They deserve equal rights as human beings."

According to the UNHCR, Iraq hosts over 300,000 refugees and asylum-seekers (as of the end of 2023), more than 90% of whom are Syrians (some 270,000). Almost 91% of all the refugees in Iraq live in the Kurdistan Region (KRI), while the rest reside in central and southern governorates in Federal Iraq.

Of the over 270,000 refugees living in the KRI, 34% reside in nine refugee camps, while 66% live in urban settings, primarily in Erbil, followed by Duhok and Al-Sulaymaniyah.