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-- "five to six million" internally and externally displaced persons.
Overall, it's an "Iraqi Holocaust," according to the UN Genocide Convention definition.
In addition, a climate of pervasive fear exists, as well as mass impoverishment and few basic services, including enough food, clean water, sanitation, electricity, health care and education. In fact, pre-Gulf War Iraq no longer exists. America effectively destroyed it.
Though Washington and Iraq are parties to relevant international human rights treaties, including the Convention Against Torture and Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, their principles have been ignored.
Focusing heavily on the rights of women and girls, HRW cites how lack of security adversely effects them, "both inside and outside" their homes. "For Iraq women, who enjoyed some of the highest levels of rights protections and social participation in the region before 1991," it's a heavy blow.
For example, misogyny promoting militias target women and girls for assassination, and intimidate them to stay out of public life. They're also victimized by family members, including fathers, brothers and husbands "for a wide variety of perceived transgressions that allegedly shame the family or tribe."
Outside homes, they're harassed and abused by the virtually all-male police and security forces. Moreover, Iraq's penal code protects perpetrators of violence against women for "honorable motives," including murder. Husbands are also empowered legally to discipline wives.
Other abuses include sexual trafficking of women and girls in and out of the country. Yet, "no reported convictions" are known, "and a long-awaited anti-trafficking bill is on hold in the parliament, awaiting revisions." Except for Kurdistan, no government-run shelters exist, and virtually no other aid is available.
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