NCIR – In his latest report to the UN Security Council on the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI), the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon reiterated the rights of the Ashraf residents in Iraq. In article 45 of his report he emphasized on the need for "continued close monitor of the situation of the People's Mujahedin."
Following is a full text of the article:
45. UNAMI continued to monitor closely the situation of the People’s Mujahedin of Iran members who are living in the Ashraf camp in Diyala Governorate.
They are still under the protection of the United States army following an agreement signed in 2004, but the Government of Iraq has expressed its intention to take full control of the camp in the near future.
In a letter dated 15 October 2008 to the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Iraq, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights urged the Government of Iraq to protect Ashraf residents from forcible deportation, expulsion or repatriation in violation of the non-refoulement principle, and to refrain from any action that would endanger their life or security.
It is also important that the humanitarian needs of the camp’s residents, including access to food and medial care, be met by those protecting the camp.
