AFP
BAGHDAD (AFP) — Around 20,000 Iraqi refugees returned home from Syria in December, suggesting an improved security situation in the country, according to the Iraqi Red Crescent.
The independent organisation said in the report, obtained by AFP on Friday, that 45,913 people returned to Iraq from Syria between mid-September and December 27, more than double the figure reported a month ago.
Of these, 38,736 had returned to Baghdad and the remainder to other provinces, it said, adding the number of internally displaced in Iraq fell by about 10,000 people in November.
Iraqis are voting with their feet, which shows the security situation has improved tremendously. Look for McClatchy to focus on the dark lining in this silver cloud. Jay Price can write a piece, "As refugees return to Bagdad, squatters feel the pinch."
