Iraqi Refugees Forced to Sell Their Bodies to Survive

Many young women who flee Iraq to get away from the horror in their country are forced to sell their bodies to survive. It is another terrible consequence of a disastrous war. It is also another story that gets ignored in the debate about whether the surge is workings or not:

Child prostitution is an increasingly widespread phenomenon in Damascus. Out of economic desperation, Iraqi refugee women and girls are forced into these roles. Frequently, women who have lost their husbands or girls who have lost their fathers resort to prostitution to support their families. And sometimes families that have no other financial resources sell their daughters into the sex industry. It is a tragic and horrifying reality.

There are no official figures as to how many of the Iraqi refugees work as prostitutes. But Hana Ibrahim, founder of the Iraqi women's group Women's Will, told The Independent that she puts the figure at 50,000. No one knows how many of the prostitutes are children.

[...]The refugees arrive, fleeing generalized violence in Iraq and often specific threats on their lives. While refugees speak of attacks by the U.S. army, they also complain of sectarian violence. Although relieved to be away from the constant risks, Iraqis arrive in Damascus and face new problems, many of them setting the conditions for the child prostitution.