UNHCR's ELIGIBILITY GUIDELINES FOR ASSESSING THE ...

Travel by Road
Road travel in Iraq, particularly in Central Iraq, remains highly dangerous. 790 There has
been an increase in roadside bombings in and around Baghdad, Basrah, Mosul, Kirkuk and
on all main routes, including fatal attacks on both military and civilian vehicles. Attacks
occur throughout the day, but travel after sunset is particularly dangerous. There are daily
attacks against the MNF/ISF throughout Central and Southern Iraq. There has also been
a rise in violent attacks at false checkpoints set up by insurgents and militias. 791 Travelling
is often delayed by MNF/ISF checkpoints and convoys, which also increases the risk of
being targeted by insurgents or criminals or being caught in armed clashes.
As formerly mixed areas become increasingly dominated by one sect and their armed
groups, 792 travel in such areas has become highly dangerous for members of the opposite
sect. There has been a rise in violent attacks at false checkpoints set up by insurgents and
militias who specifically target members of the opposite sect. 793 For example, on the road
between Baghdad and Balad, Sunnis face increased risks as these areas are under the
control of Shi’ite militias. Shi’ites in turn face added risks between Balad and Mosul.
790 The USDOS says that “(A)ll vehicular travel in Iraq is extremely dangerous”; see: USDOS, Bureau of
Consular Affairs, Travel Warning – Iraq, http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/tw/tw_921.html [accessed
April 2007]. The UK Foreign & Commonwealth Office says that “(R)oad travel remains highly dangerous”;
see United Kingdom Foreign & Commonwealth Office (FCO), Travel Advise by Country – Iraq,
http://www.fco.gov.uk/servlet/Front?pagename=OpenMarket/Xcelerate/ShowPage&c=Page&cid=100702939
0590&a=KCountryAdvice&aid=1013618386640 [accessed April 2007].
791 For example, on 1 April 2007, unknown gunmen positioned a fake checkpoint in near the town of Hibhib
in Diyala Governorate and abducted 19 civilians at gunpoint; see Aasem Taha, Mass kidnapping on main
road north of Baghdad, Voices of Iraq, 2 April 2007, http://www.iraqupdates.com/p_articles.php?refid=
DH-S-02-04-2007&article=16080; on 11 November 2006, Sunni gunmen reportedly ambushed a convoy of
minibuses at a fake checkpoint on the highway south of Baghdad near the town of Latifiyah in the “Triangle
of Death”, killing 10 Shi’ite passengers and kidnapping about 50; CBS/AP, 10 Shiites Killed In Iraq Bus
Ambush, 11 November 2007, http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/11/11/iraq/main2174419.shtml; on
5 June 2006, gunmen ordered a three minibuses to stop at a fake checkpoint near the town of Qara Tappah in
the Governorate of Dyala, dragging 21 persons, many of them high-school students off the buses before
executing those of Shiite and Kurdish origin; see The Telegraph, Militants execute 21 in Iraq bus attack,
5 June 2006, http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2006/06/04/uiraq.xml&sSheet=/news/
2006/06/04/ixnews.html.
792 See also “Affected Areas”.
793 For example, on 1 April 2007, unknown gunmen positioned a fake checkpoint near the town of Hibhib in
Diyala Governorate and abducted 19 civilians at gunpoint; see Taha, see above footnote 791; on 11 November
2006, Sunni gunmen reportedly ambushed a convoy of minibuses at a fake checkpoint on the highway south
of Baghdad near the town of Latifiyah in the “Triangle of Death”, killing 10 Shi’ite passengers and
kidnapping about 50; CBS/AP, 10 Shiites Killed In Iraq Bus Ambush, 11 November 2007,
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/11/11/iraq/main2174419.shtml; on 5 June 2006, gunmen ordered three
minibuses to stop at a fake checkpoint near the town of Qara Tappah in the Governorate of Dyala, dragging
21 persons, many of them high-school students off the buses before executing those of Shiite and Kurdish
origin; see The Telegraph, Militants execute 21 in Iraq bus attack, 5 June 2006, http://www.telegraph.co.uk/
news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2006/06/04/uiraq.xml&sSheet=/news/2006/06/04/ixnews.html.
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