VAN, 19 May 2004 (IRIN) - Dressed very smartly in a black suit and a pale pink shirt, Hamid (not his real name) started to tell the story of how he fled Iran in 1990 due to his political activities and lived in northern Iraq until 2002. Full report

MAHMOUR, 12 May 2004 (IRIN) - It's been over three months since Turkey, Iraqi officials and the office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) agreed on a plan for the organised voluntary return to their homeland of the estimated 14,000 Turkish Kurds living in Iraq. Full report

ANKARA, 30 Apr 2004 (IRIN) - A seminar called "Subcontracting opportunities in Iraq" was organised in the Turkish commercial capital, Istanbul, on Thursday, bringing together US prime contractors and Turkish companies to provide them with information on how to participate in the reconstruction work in Iraq. Full report

ANKARA, 20 Nov 2003 (IRIN) - As a result of talks between senior US, Turkish, Iraqi and UN officials in the Turkish capital, Ankara, Turkish Kurds living in northern Iraq could soon be moving back to the homes they fled almost 10 years ago Full report

ANKARA, 20 Oct 2003 (IRIN) - A convoy of trucks carrying relief aid from the Turkish Red Crescent to 500 internally displaced people (IDPs) in Iraq crossed into the country on Monday morning. "Winter is approaching fast and these people need to have some supplies in stock," the deputy director-general of the Turkish Red Crescent, Oktay Ergunay, told IRIN. Full report

SILOPI, 28 May 2003 (IRIN) - Relief workers in the southeastern Turkish border town of Silopi have turned their attention to the humanitarian crisis inside Iraq after concerns over an influx of refugees into Turkey failed to materialise. Full report

ANKARA, 13 May 2003 (IRIN) - The World Food Programme (WFP) has successfully distributed one month's food assistance to millions of people living in northern Iraq. "In the three northern governorates [of Dahuk, Arbil and Sulaymaniyah], WFP has brought in and distributed one month's consumption of food for the 3.6 million people there over the last three weeks," Heather Hill, an agency spokeswoman told IRIN. Full report

ANKARA, 7 May 2003 (IRIN) - Ambassador Ahmet Rifat Ökçün is responsible for coordinating Turkey’s reconstruction activities in post-conflict Iraq. In an interview with IRIN, Ökçün said his office was doing all it could to assist in the delivery of humanitarian aid to Iraqis. He added that Turkey would be able to draw on its past experience to play a key role in the future reconstruction of Iraq. Full report

DIYARBAKIR, 1 May 2003 (IRIN) - Efforts to move much needed food aid through the Habur gate, the main border crossing point along Turkey's 352-km border with Iraq, continue to reap impressive results. Full report

ANKARA, 15 Apr 2003 (IRIN) - The World Food Programme (WFP) is accelerating its efforts to move urgently needed food aid into northern Iraq through Turkey. At present, the Turkish corridor is the agency's only operating route for food aid into Iraq.Full report

TURKEY: Interview with Iraq coordinator Ambassador Ökçün

TURKEY: IRIN Interview with Turkish Red Crescent

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