• 1. OPERATIONAL HIGHLIGHTS
• 2. SECURITY
• 3. AIR OPERATIONS
• 4. BORDER CROSSING AND CUSTOMS
• 5. TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE
• 6. LOGISTICS COORDINATION
• 7. CIVIL-MILITARY COORDINATION
• 8. FUEL
• 9. OTHER

1. OPERATIONAL HIGHLIGHTS

On the 22nd May, the Security Council adopted a resolution lifting sanctions imposed on Iraq and allowing for full resumption of oil sales in order to restore economic activity for reconstruction.

Effective from 26th of May, all medicines imported to Iraq must have prior approval from the Iraqi Minister of Health.

A Boeing 737, 100-seat aircraft arrived in Amman on 21 May and flew its first scheduled flight on the 22nd May.

The Coalition has indicated that Al Kut airport (southeast of Baghdad) may soon be available for humanitarian flights

UNJLC and UNHAS (including the booking office) will be re-locating from Larnaca, Cyprus to Amman, Jordan during the coming week.

2. SECURITY

Iraq: All three Northern Governorates are classified as security phase 4. The Security Management Team (SMT) is recommending that the whole area be downgraded to phase 3. The Southern area is still in phase 4. Banditry and looting remain the biggest security threat in Iraq. Some NGOs are requesting permission to use weapons as a means of defence against looters. The NGO, German Association for Development, has produced a document entitled “Minimum standards regarding staff security in humanitarian aid” which discusses security issues for the humanitarian community. This document is available at www.venro.org/publikationen/archiv/personalsicherheit_engl.pdf

Jordan: The country is classified security phase 2. During the past week there has been a tightening of security and increased screening of cargo at the Al-Karamah border after reports that antiques and manuscripts are being smuggled out of Iraq. As a result, border delays are expected for traffic not using the dedicated humanitarian cargo lane.

Kuwait: The country remains at security phase 2

Syria: The country remains at security phase 1. Despite the spate of recent suicide bombings in the region, the overall threat assessment remains low. UN staff have been instructed to remain vigilant.

Turkey: The country is at security phase 1 in South East.

3. AIR OPERATIONS

The Coalition has indicated that Al Kut airport (southeast of Baghdad) may soon be available for humanitarian flights. At present, Basrah International, Baghdad International, Bashur, Kirkuk, Erbil, Mosul (only for C130 or smaller aircraft) and Basrah Airports are all operational.

The NGO, AirServ, has recommenced flights to Erbil on the 20th May after one week of suspended operations.

At the Erbil Airport, UNJLC has negotiated (through the Civil Military Operations Centre) the use of a dedicated storage area. The area can be used to store up to 30 fuel barrels, a forklift, pallets and other handling equipment. UNJLC has conducted a high level infrastructure assessment of the airfield that will be posted on the UNJLC website over the next few days. Finally, UNDP has provided a 10-ton forklift for cargo handling at the airport.

UNHAS is centralising all aircraft assets (except the IL 76) to operate from Marka airport in Amman, Jordan.

As of last week, an UNHAS AN 12 is available for cargo purposes.

A Boeing 737, 100-seat aircraft arrived in Amman on the 21st May and completed its first scheduled flight on the 22nd May. The aircraft will fly from Amman three times a week serving Erbil, Basrah and Kuwait. Flights will also be conducted between Amman and Larnaca three times a week.

UNHAS is now routinely operating flights into Iraq although the planned flights are still subject to change at short notice in response to Coalition rescheduling requests.

The Beechcraft 1900 will continue carrying small numbers of passengers from Amman to Baghdad six days a week, except Friday.

The weekly UNHAS flight schedules are posted on the UNJLC website at http://www.unjlc.org/iraq/air/02_01.html.

Effective from 26th of May, all medicines imported to Iraq must have prior approval from the Iraqi Minister of Health. The Donation Application Form and Medical Donation Policy document have been posted at the RAMCC website http://www.centaf.af.mil/ramcc. Detailed documentation of the import procedures have not yet been provided by the Coalition.

UNHAS, including the booking office, will be re-locating from Larnaca, Cyprus to Amman, Jordan during the coming week.

4. BORDER CROSSING AND CUSTOMS

On the 22nd May, the Security Council adopted a resolution lifting sanctions imposed on Iraq and allowing for full resumption of oil sales in order to restore economic activity for reconstruction. This is likely to create a huge increase in cross border traffic and a tightening of the customs procedures in the short to medium term.

In Jordan, the Al-Karamah border crossing remains open to humanitarian traffic. In addition to opening a cargo lane dedicated to humanitarian traffic, the Jordanian authorities have also increased the number of customs officers to expedite the flow of traffic. WFP is currently sending 5,000MT a day into Iraq (200 trucks daily). UNESCO is sending 100 containers into Iraq over the next two weeks.

The UN is still waiting for official clarification from the Jordanian ministry of foreign affairs on the Iraqi visa situation which remains unclear despite reports from numerous NGOs that border crossings are possible without visas.

For humanitarian organisations who are transporting goods through the Syrian borders of Yaroubiah and Al Tanf, customs declarations can be made through the Danzas clearing agent, who has positioned officers to assist with customs clearance.

A recent Syrian news report suggesting that commercial traffic can now cross the border into Iraq has been found to be misleading.

The Kuwaiti/Iraq border crossing at Safwan remains open for humanitarian and coalition traffic only. There has been a dramatic increase in the amount of contractor traffic entering Iraq as part of the drive to rebuild infrastructure in the south. The Umm Qasr crossing is still closed.

In Turkey, UNOCHI reports that approximately 200 trucks per day carrying food aid are crossing the Silopi border into Iraq. Despite the lowering of the security phase in Turkey, security clearance is still required to cross the border. Humanitarian organisations wishing to transit goods through Turkey into Iraq must contact the UN Office of the Iraq Programme (OIP) in New York. More information is available at http://www.un.org/Depts/oip/index.html

5. TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE

In Iraq, USAID reports that the Al Rutbah bridge, 174km east of the Jordan/Iraq border, will be closed and the traffic diverted through Al-Rutbah town. This temporary measure will be in effect while the bridge is undergoing reconstruction, during the next few months.

In Syria, the Director of Railway Transport in Damascus has reported to UNJLC that the Syrian/Iraqi railway network is fully operational. The network has reportedly a capacity of up to 10,000MT per day. . UNJLC will assess feasibility of future use of the railway. Negotiations are currently underway to lower the transport rates currently offered by the Railway. A map of the Iraqi rail network is available on the UNJLC website.

6. LOGISTICS COORDINATION

In Basrah, warehouse security remains a concern. The central warehouse, belonging to the Ministry of Trade, and shared by the British Army, WFP and ICRC, is suffering from daily looting despite a permanent presence of British troops inside the compound. UN agencies and NGOs have requested UNJLC to identify secure warehousing in the area.

UN Habitat has requested UNJLC to identify possible receivers for their humanitarian cargo in Basrah.

UNJLC Erbil is organising regular joint logistics meetings starting on the 24th May.

In Syria, UNJLC has been organising meetings between forwarding agents, Government representatives and the NGO community to present information on the condition of the transport infrastructure in Iraq.

7. CIVIL-MILITARY COORDINATION

Nothing to report

8. FUEL

A first group of 220 Armed Police, tasked with providing security at the Southern Oil Company have now taken over from UK Forces. The police force is expected to grow to 9,000 in total.

The importation programme of LPG and gasoline has not had a significant impact on the local market. The Coalition has adopted a new approach and is attempting to use a 30,000 ton vessel to deliver the necessary fuel. This fuel will be directly pumped into the North/South pipeline which will feed all connected towns.

This should have significant impact on cross-border movements reducing traffic congestion and delays at the border.

9. OTHER

ORHA has revised it’s area coordination structure. The northern part of Iraq now includes seven governorates – the existing five - Dohuk, Erbil, Sulaimaniyah, At-Tameem and Niniveh and the two additions of Salah ad-Din and Diyala.

UNHAS and UNJLC Larnaca will relocate to Amman on the 27th May.

UNJLC Basrah, Erbil, Mosul, Baghdad are now established.

UNDP Syria is now issuing ID cards to UN staff.