DAMASCUS, 17 Dec 2004 (IRIN) - Orphans in two govenorates of Syria are to benefit from Japanese grants awarded to two local NGOs this week. Full report

BAGHDAD, 16 Dec 2004 (IRIN) - The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is closely monitoring former Baath Party hunger strikers, who have complained about the legality of their detentions and that of future trials, an ICRC spokesman told IRIN in Jordan. Full report

BAGHDAD, 16 Dec 2004 (IRIN) - Iraq’s Minister of Agriculture, Sawsan Ali Magid al-Sharifi, faces her biggest challenge yet - how to get the country's food sector moving again after years of international sanctions, free imported food under the former United Nations Oil-for-Food programme and hundreds of displaced farmers now living in other areas of the country. With a doctoral degree in animal breeding from Iowa State University in the United States and an understanding of the economic forces at work in Iraq’s impoverished economy, al-Sharifi told IRIN in an interview that she is ready for the task. Full report

BAGHDAD, 16 Dec 2004 (IRIN) - When guards at the Ministry of Housing and Construction were hired, they all had to pay a fee of around US $200 to get their jobs. Those who didn’t pay had their applications thrown away, said an anonymous caller to the hotline for the recently established Commission for Public Integrity (CPI). Full report

AMMAN, 16 Dec 2004 (IRIN) - Roger Guarda is the Officer-in-Charge for the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Iraq, but is based in Amman for security reasons. In an interview conducted with IRIN just before his retirement, Guarda assessed the role of the agency in the country and the difficulties faced in implementing its projects from a distance. He also spoke of the priorities for the coming year and focus areas. Having served UNDP since its creation in 1965, Guarda said he was proud of what had been achieved so far, given the current situation. Full report

AMMAN, 15 Dec 2004 (IRIN) - Iraqi human rights NGOs and activists participating in a workshop in the Jordanian capital, Amman, earlier this week, have called for financial and moral support from the international community to carry out their activities. Full report

BAGHDAD, 15 Dec 2004 (IRIN) - Recent attacks on Iraq's oil industry infrastucture are exacerbating fuel shortages in the country, with many Iraqis queuing for up to eight hours to fill their cars with petrol or get gas for cooking, according to oil ministry spokesman Assem Jihad. Full report

SANA, 15 Dec 2004 (IRIN) - The first 'Democratic Forum for Arab Women' wrapped up this week in the Yemeni capital, Sana'a, calling for women in Arab countries to be given no less than 20 percent representation in political decision-making. Full report

BAGHDAD, 13 Dec 2004 (IRIN) - Dawood Pasha is Director-General of Iraq's new ministry of Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs), created to build aid agencies and civil society groups in Iraq. He spoke to IRIN in Baghdad about plans to regulate NGOs, the need for training of local staff and the image of NGOs in Iraq, where a deteriorating security situation has forced many international agencies out of the country. Full report

BAGHDAD, 13 Dec 2004 (IRIN) - Men wearing civilian clothes without protection, and sometimes even without gloves, can be seen putting out flames after explosions or attacks all over Iraq, reflecting the poor state of the country's fire service. Full report

IRAQ: Interview with Minister of Agriculture

IRAQ: Interview with UNDP head

IRAQ: Interview with head of new NGO ministry

IRAQ: Interview with Minister of Displacement and Migration

IRAQ: Interview with Secretary-General of Ministry of Defence

IRAQ: Briefing paper on food security

IRAQ: Briefing paper on power

IRAQ: Briefing paper on water and sanitation

IRAQ: Briefing paper on Education

IRAQ: Briefing paper on health